After Allahabad and Faizabad, BJP Leader Wants Sultanpur to be Renamed as 'Kushpur'

Lucknow: After changing the names of Allahabad and Faizabad, a state BJP leader has now demanded that Sultanpur be renamed as Kushpur or Kushbhavanpur, after the son of Lord Ram.

The proposal for changing the name of Sultanpur has been accepted for discussion by the UP Assembly in the upcoming winter session.

BJP MLA from Lambhua seat of Sultanpur, Deomani Dwivedi said he has already submitted a proposal for the name change.

“I have proposed that the Sultanpur be changed to its original name that was Kushpur or Kushbhavanpur. I have requested that the original name of the district be restored.”

Dwivedi added that he had also written to the revenue department regarding the same.

“Kushbhavanpur Day is celebrated here on August 26 each year since independence. A rally is taken out every year to mark the occasion,” the Sultanpur MLA said.

“The nagar palika has already passed the proposal to restore the name to Kushbhawanpur at its level and has forwarded the proposal to the Nagar Panchayat department as well.”

According to sources, after Sultanpur, the next city in line is Robertsganj, which might be merged with Sonbhadra district. Sources also revealed that other cities to be renamed soon may include Shahjahanpur.

Yogi government's name changing spree drew strong criticism not just from the opposition, but also from NDA ally Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP).

Uttar Pradesh minister and SBSP chief Om Prakash Rajbhar criticised the BJP and said the party should instead change the names of its Muslim leaders before renaming different towns and places.

"The BJP changed the names of Mughalsarai and Faizabad. They say they were named after the Mughals. They have a national spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain, Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Uttar Pradesh Minister Mohsin Raza - three Muslim faces of the BJP. They should change their names first," Rajbhar said.

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav had also attacked chief minister Yogi Adityanath for taking credit by just renaming cities. "Raja Harshvardhan made 'Prayag Kumbh' great by offering donations, but today's rulers are trying to take credit for the work just by renaming the city to 'Prayagraj'," he tweeted.

He added, "They (BJP) have even re-named 'Ardh Kumbh' as 'Kumbh'. This mocks our tradition and belief."

The Congress, too, hit out at the ruling dispensation, with a party leader saying that changing the name of the historic city to 'Prayagraj' was an attempt to toy with the history of the nation.

Earlier, the government had renamed the Mughalsarai Railway station, another historic spot, as Deen Dayal Upadhyaya junction. In August this year, the UP government had sent a request to the Centre to rename the airports in Agra, Bareilly and Kanpur. According to reports, the proposal is to rename the Agra airport after Jan Sangh founder Deen Dayal Upadhyay.

The ruling BJP has, however, justified the name changes across Uttar Pradesh, saying they are merely restoring older names and correcting historical distortions.