Pakistan may take name 'India' if India officially changes name to 'Bharat' at UN: International media
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Amid the ongoing controversy surrounding an invitation to President Droupadi Murmu of India, which referred to her as the "President of Bharat" rather than "President of India," and the opposition's assertion that the Narendra Modi government is considering renaming India to Bharat, local media reports in Pakistan have hinted at the possibility of Pakistan asserting its claim to the name 'India.'
According to a tweet from the South Asia Index, it was suggested that Pakistan might stake a claim to the name "India" if India officially disavows it at the United Nations level. This intriguing development has raised questions about the historical and geographical significance of the term.
Nationalists in Pakistan have long contended that Pakistan has a legitimate right to the name "India," as it historically refers to the Indus region. This connection to the mighty Indus River, which spans much of present-day Pakistan, is seen as a point of contention.
It's worth noting that the Indian government has not issued an official statement regarding the proposed name change from India to Bharat. The South Asia Index, in its tweets, has emphasized that the term "Bharat" has deep roots in Sanskrit, which adds another layer of complexity to this debate.
The historical context is crucial in understanding this debate. The tweet highlights that the name "India" originally referred to the Indus region and the basin of the powerful Indus River, which extended into what is now modern-day Pakistan. It's interesting to note that Muhammad Ali Jinnah, a key figure in Pakistan's history, had reservations about "India" as the name for the newly independent country, suggesting "Hindustan" or "Bharat" instead.
The tweet from South Asia Index also indicates that the right-wing in India has had a long-standing aversion to the name "India." Meanwhile, former Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan has asserted that the country's original and "unquestionable" name is Bharat, with the use of "India" being a British-imposed term.
Source: The Week link
