The Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday criticised the alleged move of the Centre to rename the country. He said any move to replace the name ‘India’ is against the Constitution and disregards the country itself. His comment comes in amid the controversy over the G20 dinner invitation from President Droupadi Murmu describing her position as the ‘President of Bharat’ instead of the customary ‘President of India’.
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“Article 1 of the Constitution itself refers to our nation as ‘India that is Bharat.’ Similarly, the preface of the Constitution begins with the words ‘We the people of India.’ However, what the Centre is attempting now is the removal of the word ‘India’ through a constitutional amendment,” CM Vijayan said in a statement.
The chief minister said the move was part of attempts to sabotage the country’s heterogeneity and urged the public to resist such measures.
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“Why this contempt and fear of the word ‘India’? There is a deliberate attempt to erase even the spirit nurtured in children through the Pledge: ‘India is my country; all Indians are my brothers and sisters’,” he claimed.
{{/usCountry}}“Why this contempt and fear of the word ‘India’? There is a deliberate attempt to erase even the spirit nurtured in children through the Pledge: ‘India is my country; all Indians are my brothers and sisters’,” he claimed.
{{/usCountry}}“Political decisions should never be contrary to the foundational ideals of our nation. This dubious attempt is undemocratic and unconstitutional,” the CM said, urging the BJP-led Centre to withdraw from alleged moves to replace the name of the country.