Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma Replaces India With Bharat In His Twitter Bio After Opposition Announced Alliance Name

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma made a notable change to his Twitter bio, replacing "India" with "Bharat" after 26 opposition parties decided to use the name "INDIA" to represent their united front for the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections.

In response to this alliance's name, Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), Sarma took a jibe, highlighting that India was a name given by the British and emphasized the need to liberate the nation from its colonial past.

His Twitter bio, previously stating "Chief Minister of Assam, India," was promptly modified to "Chief Minister of Assam, Bharat" following the announcement by the opposition.

Sarma tweeted, "Our civilisational conflict is pivoted around India and Bharat. The British named our country India. We must strive to free ourselves from colonial legacies. Our forefathers fought for Bharat, and we will continue to work for Bharat."

The Congress party responded to Sarma's remarks by pointing out that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had also used "India" as part of several government schemes and initiatives such as 'Digital India,' 'Make In India,' 'Skill India,' and more. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh mentioned this and asked whether the Assam CM had an issue with the PM's usage of "India."

In an attempt to avoid the debate over "India" vs. "Bharat," the opposition parties later added the tagline "Jeetega Bharat" (India will win) to their united front.

This decision came after late-night discussions among the alliance leaders. Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray suggested using a Hindi tagline for the opposition alliance.