‘Who permitted renaming’: AAP govt cries foul after Sarai Kale Khan rechristened to Bhagwan Birsa Munda Chowk
Delhi government sources, however, said naming a location was the prerogative of the State Naming Authority which, at the moment, did not exist in the Capital since it was yet to be constituted.
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Shah had unveiled a statue of Birsa Munda Friday afternoon near the Sarai Kale Khan Chowk on the occasion of his 150th birth anniversary year. (Image source: X/LG/Dehi)Union Home Minister Amit Shah named the Sarai Kale Khan intersection as ‘Bhagwan Birsa Munda Chowk’ after inaugurating the tribal cultural icon’s statue Friday. Soon after, the AAP government in the Capital questioned if due process was followed to rename the place. Shah had unveiled a statue of Birsa Munda Friday afternoon near the Sarai Kale Khan Chowk on the occasion of his 150th birth anniversary year.
The event followed the renaming of the intersection by Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) Manohar Lal Khattar.
However, AAP sources sought to know whether the proposal for the renaming of the crossing – where east, central and north Delhi converge – was vetted by the road naming authority that presides over the process.
Sources in the Union government, on the other hand, challenged the contention stating that the name ‘Sarai Kale Khan’ — which was neither delineated nor “officially named” — “did not exist in any government records” pertaining to the Capital.
Delhi government sources, however, said naming a location was the prerogative of the State Naming Authority which, at the moment, did not exist in the Capital since it was yet to be constituted.
“Currently, Delhi does not have a road naming authority, so where was the permission to rename (Sarai Kale Khan Chowk to) Bhagwan Birsa Munda Chowk? This road falls under Delhi government’s PWD. Where is the order regarding the renaming?” a Delhi government source asked.
Sources in the Union government, however, contended this. “Sarai Kale Khan is the name of the area and ISBT there will still be known by the same name…there was no mention of Sarai Kale Khan in government records; the renaming of the intersection is the first of its kind when it comes to the representation of tribal identity in the capital,” a source in the Union government said.
At the event, where Khattar, Delhi L-G VK Saxena, MoS Harsh Malhotra and other dignitaries were in attendance, the Union Home Minister said that in 2021, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced that the birth anniversary of Bhagwan Birsa Munda (November 15) would be celebrated as ‘Janjatiya Gaurav Divas’ (Tribal Pride Day).
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