Akhara Parishad seeks renaming roads, draws Opposition ire

PRAYAGRAJ (Uttar Pradesh): The Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad (ABAP) has demanded renaming of all roads named after the Mughal invaders and Britishers. ABAP chief Mahant Narendra Giri said, "India got Independence 74 years ago and roads named after Mughal invaders like Tughlak, Humayun and Babur and Britishers in Delhi should be renamed after Chandra Shekhar Azad, Subhash Chandra Bose, SardarVallabhbhai Patel, GulzariLal Nanda and Veer Abdul Hameed."

He further said, "Why should roads still be named after Mughal invaders and Britishers who looted and divided the country? Most countrymen, particularly youngsters, feel embarrassed after seeing roads named on invaders. These roads should be renamed on the names of martyrs who laid their lives for the country."

He explained, "Visit any city of the country and you will find roads named on Mughal invaders or Britishers who looted, divided the country. We demand that the union government should rename all these roads on our freedom fighters and martyrs." The ABAP statement has led to a controversy with the opposition denouncing the statement.

"The government should function according to the Constitution of the country and not as per whimsical demands of priests and saints or else it will set a dangerous precedent. The contribution of Mughal emperors in making India a great nation cannot be forgotten," said Samajwadi Party district spokesperson DaanBahadur 'Madhur'.

He accused the saffron brigade of diverting the attention of the common man from persisting problems like unemployment and inflation to irrelevant issues.

The state Congress leader MukundTiwari said, "It is an unfortunate statement. Roads are named on personalities who made our nation great irrespective of their caste, creed and religion. " (IANS)

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