INDIA vs NDA can come later; it’s India vs Bharat now as Himanta, Ramesh spar over name
The renaming of UPA as INDIA has led to a war of words between the BJP and the Congress, with Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma claiming that the word “India” was coined by the British and smacked of “colonial legacies”. To that, Congress contended that he should first point that out to the Prime Minister who named programmes such as Skill India, Start-up India, and Digital India.
Taking a dig at Opposition parties over the name of their coalition, Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), Sarma on Tuesday (July 18) said “India” was not “Bharat”. However, the BJP leader possibly didn’t realise that his own Twitter bio had “India” in it. After being trolled mercilessly on social media, he replaced the word “India” with “Bharat” in his bio.
Also read: ‘One step at a time’: With INDIA, Oppn assumes savvy name, keeps trickier issues for later
Ironically, on the same day as the Opposition came up with the new name for the alliance at the Bengaluru meeting, PM Narendra Modi slammed the Opposition and coined a new meaning for the NDA — New India, Developed Nation, and the Aspiration of People and Region. NDA actually stands for National Democratic Alliance.
Ramesh’s jibe
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh on Wednesday took a further jibe at Sarma. “Is the Assam CM having a surplus of sour grapes in his mouth? His new mentor, Mr Modi, gave us Skill India, Start-up India and Digital India—all new names for ongoing programmes,” he tweeted.
Is the Assam CM having a surplus of sour grapes in his mouth? His new mentor, Mr. Modi, gave us Skill India, Start-up India and Digital India—all new names for ongoing programmes. He’s asked CMs of different states to work together as ‘Team India’. He even made an appeal to Vote… pic.twitter.com/YYCeDcWMui
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) July 19, 2023
“He’s (Modi) asked CMs of different states to work together as Team India. He even made an appeal to Vote India!” Ramesh added in the tweet.
“But when 26 political parties call their formation INDIA (Indian National Developmental, Inclusive Alliance), he (Sarma) throws a fit and says use of India reflects colonial mentality! He should go tell that to his Boss,” Ramesh ended his tweet.
Watch: It’s Modi vs INDIA. Grand Opposition meet in Bengaluru concludes, alliance named INDIA
The Congress leader also shared an old video of Modi in which he is seen appealing to voters to “vote for India”.
Sarma’s tweet
Sarma’s tweet on Tuesday read, “Our civilisational conflict in pivoted around India and Bharat. The British named our country as India. We must strive to free ourselves from colonial legacies. Our forefathers fought for Bharat and we will continue to work for Bharat. BJP for Bharat.”
Our civilisational conflict is pivoted around India and Bharat.The British named our country as India. We must strive to free ourselves from colonial legacies. Our forefathers fought for Bharat, and we will continue to work for Bharat .
BJP for BHARAT
— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) July 18, 2023
Soon, the tweet was flooded with replies asking him why his Twitter bio mentioned “India” and whether names like Make in India, Start Up India would all be changed now. Some even pointed out that the BJP’s official account was “@BJP4India”. Soon, Sarma changed his Twitter bio to “Chief minister of Assam, Bharat” from “Chief minister of Assam, India”.
Also read: Big Opposition meet pulls off a coup, turns 2024 battle into INDIA vs Modi
At the Bengaluru meeting — the second such Opposition unity meeting after the first in Patna in June — 26 parties came together to rename the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) as INDIA. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi asserted that the 2024 Lok Sabha fight was now “between INDIA and Prime Minister Narendra Modi”.
(With agency inputs)
