Allahabad, one of biggest cities of Uttar Pradesh will now be called Prayagraj, announced a senior official from the state’s ruling BJP. The proposal was put forward by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and passed at a cabinet meeting. Obviously there were positive and negative reactions to the move.
Emperor Akbar is thought to have founded a new city called Ilahabas or Ilahabad; which later came to be known as Allahabad. For some reason, the birth anniversary of one of India’s best known and most progressive rulers was seen fit for the renaming of Allahabad to Prayagraj.
Those that have welcomed the move feel that this restores Hindu honour and glory, since the location of Prayag in Allahabad at the confluence of the Ganga and Yamuna, is holy to Hindus and is highly significant for the Kumbh Mela.
Prayag is the location of the Kumbh mela where devotees arrive in lakhs for pilgrimage. The renaming of the entire area surrounding Prayag, including the city built by Akbar and developed further by subsequent Mughal kings to Pryagraj is seen as a victory of sorts by many.
Audrey Truschke, professor of South Asian history and writer gives us some historical context. When Akbar named his new city, he named it Ilahabad, Ilaha referring to ‘Gods’ of the Hindu pantheon. Scholars also believe that it refers to the all-embracing religion called Din-E-Elahi that Akbar had founded after studying and including tenets of Hinduism, Islam, Christianity and Zoroastrianism.
The fact that so many Indian cities are named after Muslim rulers has been a source of strong resentment among a significant proportion of Indians. These cities were actually founded and built by the rulers who then named these cities after themselves (which was par for the course in those vainglorious times). However, there are many who believe that names such as Aurangabad, Ahmedabad, should be changed to what the area was called before the rulers actually built the cities.
Some said thanks but sarcastically. Many are highly cynical about the renaming, feeling that this will make zero difference to the lives of the people who live in it. There is a strongly stated view that the name change is nothing but vote bank politics in view of the upcoming elections.
Not too long ago, the BJP government changed the name of Mughal Sarai station to Deen Dayal Upadhyay. While Mughal Sarai is the name of the area, Upadhyay is someone most Indians have no clue about. This was seen as a meaningless symbolic change that feeds into parochialism and religious chauvinism. The name changing of Allahabad is seen in the same light.
Renaming has in the past, been used as an insidious tool by fascists. Some have likened the current predilection for renaming to this.
People who were born in Allahabad are angry at what they see as the unnecessary foisting of a new name on the people of the city. Some also pointed out the fact that Mumbai is still Bombay for many, Rajiv Chowk is still Connaught Place (except maybe for bus and metro routes) everyone still calls Bangalore, Bangalore and not Bengaluru. Gurugram also does not quite trip off the tongue yet.
Popular South Indian actor Siddharth pointed out the fact that Emperor Akbar was one of the most significant, farsighted and progressive Indian rulers in India's history; a fact that many simply refuse to acknowlege. While on the one hand is the attempt to demonise a progressive and fair ruler by trying to rewrite history, on the other is the government's deafening silence with regard to the numerous allegations of sexual abuse against its own central minister of the same name (who did however finally resign his post after massive uproar).
Civic amenities and infrastructure of #AllahabadNowPrayagraj need urgent attention; particularly just ahead of the Kumbh Mela, which will stretch both to the limit. Why is the government prioritising this name change right now? For many the answer is simple - #2019Elections. The real question is of course how many will be taken in this meaningless symbolism; by the thinly veiled attempt to pander to sentiments and disguise the absence of real change on the ground.
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