Opposition parties today added the tagline "Jeetega Bharat" (India will win) to their united front.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has removed "India" from his Twitter bio and added "Bharat" in its place after 26 opposition parties chose the name INDIA to brand their united front as they plan to take on the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections.
Taking a sharp dig at the opposition alliance's name, the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), Mr Sarma claimed that the British had named the country India, and that the struggle should be to liberate the nation from "colonial legacies".
Mr Sarma's bio on Twitter which previously read, "Chief Minister of Assam, India", was promptly changed to "Chief Minister of Assam, Bharat" following the opposition's announcement.
"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," Mr Sarma wrote on Twitter. "Our forefathers fought for Bharat, and we will continue to work for Bharat."
Responding to Mr Sarma's comments, the Congress suggested the Assam Chief Minister direct his remarks to Prime Minister Narendra Modi who has named several government schemes and programs after India such as 'Digital India', 'Make In India' and 'Skill India', among others.
"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 has (PM Modi) asked CMs of different states to work together as 'Team India'. He even made an appeal to Vote India!" wrote Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Twitter.
"But when 26 political parties call their formation INDIA (Indian National Developmental, Inclusive Alliance), he (Mr Sarma) throws a fit and says use of India reflects 'colonial mentality'! He should go tell that to his Boss," he added.
Opposition parties today added the tagline "Jeetega Bharat" (India will win) to their united front, in an attempt to avoid the debate over "India" vs "Bharat."
The tagline was finalised after late-night discussions among the opposition alliance leaders.
Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray suggested that the opposition alliance use a Hindi tagline.