PM Modi tells officials to refrain from discussing possible renaming of India

MOSCOW: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a cabinet meeting the day before to discuss preparations for the upcoming G20 Summit and also instructed his ministers to refrain from debating a possible renaming of India to Bharat, Sputnik quoted Indian newspaper Hindustan Times report on Thursday.

Bharat is India in Hindi, one of the country's official languages alongside English. On Tuesday, invitations to a G20 dinner sent out by Indian President Droupadi Murmu introduced her as president of Bharat.

Soon after, Indian media reported, citing sources, that the Indian government may propose to officially change the country's name to Bharat and bring the issue to a special session of Parliament, which will be held from Sept 18 to 22.

Modi advised his officials not to make statements on issues they are not authorised to speak on or that could cause controversy at the G20 Summit, which will be held in New Delhi from Sept 9 to 10, people familiar with the matter told the newspaper.

He also instructed the ministers to stick to their duties and fight attacks on matters of faith, according to the report.

"The ministers were told that they need to assertively face falsehoods and attacks against issues of faith, to put things in the right context and to rely on the provisions of the Constitution that do not allow denigration of any religion," one of the sources said.

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party urged lawmakers and party officials to refrain from rash comments or controversial statements that could make headlines during the summit.

"Spokespersons and other leaders have been told to speak only on issues that they are authorised to speak on. They should not let the opposition hijack the narrative at a time when the focus is on India and the global summit," a party representative said.

Murmu's decision to use the country's name in Hindi on invitations, as well as the possible renaming of the country, sparked outrage among opposition parties, many of which had earlier joined the newly formed Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (I.N.D.I.A.) to take down the ruling National Democratic Alliance in the 2024 elections.

-- BERNAMA