Under the British, place names were changed to something easy to pronounce. But the present renaming spree, by the BJP government, is aimed at provoking a particular community and is not with any other logic or rationale in mind (Editorial, “In whose name?” November 10). But the question in the minds of the people is when there are so many basic things to be done such as improving the livelihood of the poor, ensuring that they have better access to health care and creating employment opportunities for the youth and so on, why are some of the State governments engaged in an unproductive renaming spree? How far is this justified? This also shows the least concern for governance and that it is about misplaced priorities.
A.G. Rajmohan,
Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh
It is baffling that the Yogi Adityanath government’s sudden desire and priority is to rename cities, taking precedence over core issues — and ones which the highly populated State is struggling to address — such as poor literacy, poverty, unemployment, a lack of infrastructure, bad health care and deteriorating law and order (“More U.P. cities on renaming list”, November 11). It is a pity that the BJP is now raking up Ayodhya, Sabarimala, Tipu Sultan and other controversial issues to derive political mileage. What about taking the initiative in resolving issues of national importance such as farmer suicides, unemployment, corruption and the bad loans crisis? A large section of the population still does not have its basic needs met. I am sure that the history of the town is not such a burning issue for them.
Kshirasagara Balaji Rao,
Hyderabad
Right-thinking citizens and history aspirants warned against the move even when it started with the end of colonial rule. But vote-bank politics now rules the scene. How history can help a nation move forward is altogether ignored. Renaming is not limited to just cities but is being extended to other entities such as educational institutions, railway stations, roads and parks. At no stage have precautions been taken to keep history intact for generations to come.
P.R.V. Raja,
Pandalam, Kerala
One is left wide-eyed by the extent to which the renaming spree is going just for the sake of a vote bank. The Bharatiya Janata Party and those in the States in which it is in power should understand that it cannot rewrite history by just renaming cities. The focus on delivering good governance should not be lost sight of. This is what will fetch the votes.
Vidhya B. Ragunath,
Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu
