Call it an act of mischief or a deliberate attempt, the iconic Akbar Road in Delhi was renamed briefly on Wednesday as a label with “Maharana Pratap Road” written on it covered one of the signboards.
This change happened overnight. But the police soon acted and got it removed. Besides, some of the top politicians, the iconic Akbar Road also houses the Congress party headquarters.
The attempt at “renaming” the road gains significance as May 9 happens to be the birth anniversary of Maharana Pratap, a popular king from Rajasthan.
The proposal to rename Akbar Road first came from Haryana Chief Minister ML Khattar in 2016.
“The name of Akbar Road should be changed in honour of Maharana Pratap. I will move a proposal to this effect in the next meeting of the council,” Karan Singh Tanwar, the NDMC vice-chairperson and former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA, had told The Hindu.
Union Minister VK Singh also pitched in for the same and had written to the government suggesting that Akbar Road or any other road in Lutyen’s Delhi be renamed after Maharana Pratap.
In 2015, the renaming of the Aurangzeb Road to Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Road was a much-debated topic on social media.
Last year, BJP leader Vinay Katiyar claimed that Mughal emperor Shah Jahan built Taj Mahal after destroying a Hindu temple. He said the Hindu temple which existed earlier was called “Tejo Mahalaya” and it housed a Shivling. In 2014, BJP leader Lakshmikant Bajpayee also said the same about Taj Mahal.