India or Bharat? The Republic matters
The controversy over the name of the country combined with the suggestions of friends and family has led to naming this substack. In today's edition, I explain what the name is about.
The announcement regarding the special session of Parliament was followed up with baby steps on controversial subjects. Changing the name of the country - from Republic of India to Republic of Bharat - on invites for the dinner reception for G20 leaders was one of them. It led to debates on civilisational values, decolonisation, the country’s place in the world, etc.
Members of the Constituent Assembly; Courtesy: @ambedkariteIND
This post is not about that debate. Three weeks ago, I published the first edition of this substack. The idea behind this endeavour is to read more myself, try to understand issues, and share what I have learnt with more people. Today, the failure of institutions responsible for informing and educating us has led to a vacuum. This vacuum has been filled by opinions shaped in a matter of seconds or a few hundred characters. The shrill voices and inconsequential subjects echo in the hallowed studios of the fourth pillar of democracy.
The issues which matter, and the nuances therein, are lost in the quick fixes and the loud commandments. This substack is an honest attempt at bringing up issues that matter and providing all possible sides of the debated, letting readers conclude for themselves. Being a lawyer by training, the immediate analogy I could draw was to the duty of a lawyer as an officer of the court. As a lawyer, one’s duty is not to a client, but to the court and that duty is dedication in the pursuit of the truth. The realistic side of the profession, of course, requires one to take positions - but the outcome is the development of law, principles and precedents.
When I sat down to write the first post, I realised that while I did want to act like an officer of the court, that could not be possible without taking positions. My biases and prejudiced opinions (developed, after rational thought) would manifest through the post. I would only hope that those opinions would add value to the understanding of at least some readers. It dawned upon me that I needed a client.
As a person interested in the Constitution, politics and policy, and trained in law, these are the subjects of the posts. I intend to write about issues which matter to the Republic; I intend to explain the issues in an attempt to reach the truth and I intend to present my version of it. Every week I take up a new issue in the court of public opinion. I argue for my client, the Republic of India, that is Bharat.
In the Matter of the Republic, I welcome you.