'We consider requests...': United Nations responds to 'India vs Bharat' name change row

Amid the ongoing debate on the change of name from India to Bharat, the United Nations has chimed in with a response. Speaking on the issue, Farhan Haq, the deputy spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said the global body considered requests from countries to change their names when it receives a proposal from them.

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Citing the example of Turkey changing its name to Turkiye under the rule of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last year, Haq said: "Well, in the case of Turkiye, we responded to a formal request delivered to us by the Government. Obviously, if we get requests like that, we consider them as they come."

Notably, prior to departing for Indonesia for the ASEAN-India Summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting with all his ministers ahead of the upcoming G20 Summit scheduled to be held in Delhi on September 9 and 10.

During the meeting, PM Modi asked his ministers to stay away from commenting on the name change issue. "Do not comment," sources quoted him as saying.

Watch | Indian PM Modi reacts to 'India-Bharat' row

PM Modi's supposed instruction to party leaders came a day after Union Minister Anurag Thakur dismissed the claims as mere rumours.

“I think these are just rumours which are taking place. All I want to say is that anyone who objects to the word Bharat clearly shows the mindset," said the minister.

“I am a minister of Bharat Sarkar, many news channels also have Bharat in their name. Why should anyone object to Bharat, who are these people who are allergic to the name Bharat? Who is opposing the name Bharat? Now have you even started feeling the pain at the mention of Bharat?” Thakur added while attacking the opposition.

Row started after G20 invitation

A massive political row erupted in India after a G20 dinner invitation letter dispatched by the president of India referred to her as ‘President of Bharat’. This triggered a wave of speculations that the government might be looking forward to renaming India in the upcoming special session of the parliament.

Notably, Article 1 of the Indian Constitution explicitly mentions the two names of the country by stating, "India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States". Experts say it is highly unlikely that the government will change the name of the country - instead, the government leaders and agencies will focus on promoting the 'Bharat' name going forward.

(With inputs from agencies)

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