Mayawati urges SC to ban political use of ‘Bharat’ and ‘India’

In a significant development, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati has called upon the Supreme Court to take suo moto cognizance of the ongoing political debate surrounding the names ‘Bharat’ and ‘India’ and to impose a ban on all political entities, organisations, and alliances using these names for their own purposes.

Mayawati’s remarks come in the wake of a controversy sparked by President Droupadi Murmu, who issued an invitation for a G20 dinner in her capacity as “President of Bharat” rather than “President of India.”

This move ignited a political firestorm, with members of the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc suggesting that the use of ‘Bharat’ in the invitation was linked to the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) unease over the formidable challenge posed by the opposition to the ruling party.

Mayawati expressed her view that the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) or the central government should have taken legal recourse when opposition parties christened their alliance as INDIA.

She emphasised that the ruling party should have initiated legislation to prohibit the use of the name ‘INDIA’ for political alliances.

The BSP leader maintained that ‘Bharat’ and ‘India’ are well-established and dignified constitutional names for the country, as affirmed by Article 1 of the Constitution, which states, “India, that is Bharat, shall be a union of states.”

Mayawati also underlined the deep respect and affection that the people of the country hold for the Constitution, which was overseen by Bhimrao Ambedkar during its drafting.

BSF chief further cautioned against any attempts to amend or tamper with the spirit of the Constitution, deeming such actions as inappropriate and unjust.