Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has hinted at a potential name change for Akbarpur, aligning with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Panch Pran’ (five pledges) which advocate removing “vestiges of slavery from the face of India and respecting heritage”.
According to an official release on May 9, Yogi Adityanath hinted at changing the name of Akbarpur.
“Uttering the name of the city leaves a bad taste in the mouth. Rest assured, all these things will change. We must eradicate all remnants of colonialism from our nation and honour our heritage,” the chief minister said, according to the official release.
If the Modi government secures a third term in the Lok Sabha election, the state administration will submit a proposal to the Centre to alter Akbarpur’s name, TOI reported, quoting a government spokesperson.
This initiative extends beyond Akbarpur, as the state government contemplates renaming several districts including Aligarh, Azamgarh, Shahjahanpur, Ghaziabad, Firozabad, Farrukhabad, and Moradabad.
Since assuming office as chief minister in 2017, Yogi Adityanath has ordered the renaming of numerous roads, parks, buildings, and intersections across the state of Uttar Pradesh. Many of these have been renamed after the former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Examples include Atal Bihari Vajpayee Road, Atal Chauraha, Atal Bihari Vajpayee Conference Centre, Atal Setu, and Atal Bihari Kalyan Mandap in Lucknow.
The renaming trend has extended to locations such as the Mughalsarai railway station, now named Deen Dayal Upadhyay Junction, and the city of Allahabad, renamed Prayagraj, during the 2019 Kumbh Mela. Faizabad was renamed to Ayodhya and the Jhansi railway station was renamed after Rani Lakshmi Bai.
Recent proposals indicate further renaming efforts across Uttar Pradesh, including Aligarh to Harigarh, Firozabad to Chandra Nagar, Mainpuri to Mayapuri, and Sambhal to Prithviraj Nagar or Kalki Nagar. There are also demands to change Sultanpur to Kushbhawanpur and Deoband to Devvrind.
