Supreme Court has sought a response from the government on a petition seeking a declaration that the Republic be called ‘Bharata’ instead of ‘India’. A Bench led by Chief Justice of India H.L. Dattu issued notice to the Centre and all the States on a public interest petition filed by social activist, Niranjan Bhatwal from Maharashtra, that the public should have an “unambigous understanding” that the country’s name is ‘Bharata.’ It sought a clarification on the phrase “India, that is, Bharat shall be a Union of States” used in Article 1 of the Indian Constitution. The petitioner represented by Ajay G. Majithia and Rahul Pandey said there the word ‘India’ is not a literal translation of the word ‘Bharata.’ Besides the country, both historically and in the Scriptures, is known as ‘Bharata.’

The PIL said that the Constituent Assembly had debated many names for the new-born Republic, and some of them were “Bharat, Hindustan, Hind and Bharatbhumi or Bharatvarsh and names of that kind”. “The country has one principal name, which is historically significant, that is ‘Bharat’. The first Article of the Constitution of India states that 'India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States', implicitly codifying ‘Bharat’ name for the Republic of India,” the petition contended.

It is a welcome move to rename ‘India” as ‘Bharat’, because Bharat is what the country has been known for centuries. To uphold and preserve the culture and traditions of the country, Bharat will be appropriate. The central government as well as the state governments and union territories should give the consent to rename ‘India’ as ‘Bharat’. India is a name given by the British during the colonial rule. It is too late that we have to erase the dark memories of eh colonial era. Even in the puranas the country is known as ‘Bharat’. The culture and tradition of the country denotes as ‘Bharat’. The majority of the people of the country also would like to know their country as ‘Bharat’.

The name ‘Bharat’ to this country gives some prosperity due to its perfect numerological significance. There will a hue and cry against the initiative and politicization of the event. But the Supreme Court has to take a bold decision for the prosperity of the country. This will definitely put our country in the top of prosperity.

By Premji