Lotus in G20 Logo Sparks Squabble Between BJP and Main Opposition Party

India will take over the chair of the G20, a grouping of the world's 20 largest economies, from Indonesia on December 1, following the summit in Bali on November 15-16.

India's scheduled presidency of the G20 appears to have triggered unusual political bickering within the country over its logo - the lotus flower. The main opposition party Congress has objected to its use, as it also happens to be the federally governing BJP's party symbol.

Slamming the BJP's move, Congress' media head Jairam Ramesh said the country's governing party was "shamelessly" promoting itself at a global level.

Ramesh wrote on Twitter, "Over 70 years ago, (India's first Prime Minister) Nehru rejected the proposal to make Congress flag the flag of India. Now, BJP's election symbol has become official logo for India's presidency of G20! While shocking, we know by now that Mr. Modi & BJP won't lose any opportunity to promote themselves shamelessly!"

Reacting to Ramesh's criticism, the government immediately hit back, with Kanchan Gupta, senior advisor in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, leading its response.

"Over 70 years ago lotus was declared national flower of India when Jawaharlal Nehru was Prime Minister. Do you @Jairam_Ramesh find that 'shocking' too? Btw, successive Congress Govts have issued currency coins with the lotus symbol. And the National Emblem stands atop a lotus," Gupta wrote on the microblogging website.

Subsequently, the BJP's national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla shot back at Congress, reminding the opposition party about the lotus being the national flower of India and not just belonging to a party.

Poonawalla posted: "Lotus happens to be our National Flower! It also happens to be the aasan (seat) of Maa Lakshmi - Are you opposed to our national flower? Will you remove Kamal from name of Kamal Nath? Btw Rajiv also means Kamal ! Hope you see no agenda there!!!"

On Tuesday evening, Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the logo and the website for India's G20 presidency.

The G-20 Summit in India in 2023 will reflect the spirit of वसुधैव कुटुंबकम…One Earth, One Family, One Future! pic.twitter.com/FVEPBOTKev

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 8, 2022

Explaining the reason behind the logo depicting a lotus, Modi said that the flower's seven petals are indicative of the seven continents of Earth and under India's leadership, the G20's mission will be to bring harmony to the whole world.

"I congratulate countrymen on the historic occasion of India's G20 Presidency. Lotus portrays India's cultural heritage and faith in bringing the world together," he said.

"India's presidency comes at a time of crisis and chaos in the world... No matter the circumstances, the lotus still blooms," PM Modi concluded.