India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi's placard at the opening of the G20 summit on Saturday referred to India as "Bharat", raising speculation of a change of name for the South Asian nation, APA reports citing Reuters.
India is also called Bharat, Bharata, Hindustan - its pre-colonial names - in Indian languages and these are used interchangeably by the public and officially.
While the country has traditionally stuck to using India in titles such as president or prime minister while communicating in English, President Droupadi Murmu earlier this week referred to herself as the "President of Bharat" in a dinner invitation for a reception of G20 leaders, sparking controversy.
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