"Nothing wrong in renaming India as Bharat”: BJP Andhra chief

Amaravati (Andhra Pradesh) [India], September 7 : Amid the controversy around the phrase "President of Bharat" in a formal invite from the Rashtrapati Bhavan to foreign delegates for a G20 dinner, leading to speculations of a proposed name change of the country in the upcoming Special Session of Parliament, the BJP's Andhra Pradesh Bharatiya chief Daggubati Purandeswari on Thursday said there was nothing wrong in renaming India as 'Bharat'.
Speaking to ANI on Thursday, Purandeswari said the name 'Bharat' is inscribed in the Constitution. "I feel there is nothing wrong in renaming India as Bharat. Where's the problem with protecting our heritage and cultural roots? However, it's unfortunate that some people are finding faults with it."
Also wading into the furore around Tamil Nadu minister Udhayanidhi Stalin's 'eradicate Sanatan Dharma' rant, the BJP leader said, "No Hindu would welcome Udayanidhi Stalin's words (about Sanatana Dharma). Sanatan Dharma is part of our way of life and it should not be ridiculed."
The BJP state president participated in the Janmashtami celebrations at Pedavadlapudi village in Mangalagiri Mandal in Guntur district, greeting locals on the occasion of the Hindu festival.
She also expressed concern at the government's "policy of hiring non-Hindus" without checking their background in Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams, which runs the state's shrines, including the Tirumala Venkateswara temple.
Picking on the formal invitation to foreign delegates for the G20 dinner, which was sent out in the name of the 'President of Bharat' and not India, the Opposition leaders in the INDIA bloc claimed that the BJP was nervous about the nomenclature.
The leaders of the Opposition bloc alleged that the Centre was resorting to “drama” just because they came together and named their grouping INDIA. BJP leaders, however, strongly supported the Centre's wording of the formal invite to the G20 dinner.
Udhyanidhi's remarks triggered a backlash from the BJP, which accused the DMK and the Congress, its partner in Tamil Nadu, of advocating the abolition of Sanatana Dharma.
Speaking at the Chennai conference last week, Udhayanidhi said 'Sanatana' (Sanatan Dharma) is like malaria and dengue, which should not be merely opposed but eradicated.
"A few things cannot be opposed but should only be abolished. We can't merely oppose dengue, mosquitoes, malaria, or corona. They have to be eradicated. Rather than merely opposing Sanatana, it should be eradicated," he said.