Rajasthan govt’s gift to Atal Bihari Vajpayee: All Rajiv Gandhi schemes to be named after him, Congress fumes

The renaming has not gone down well with the Opposition Congress in the state that slammed the Raje government for such a ‘regressive’ move. “It is sheer unimaginative on part of the state government to replace the name of one former PM by another. If they really wanted to pay a tribute to their leader they should have started something new in his name and not renamed the existing centers. Rajiv Gandhi had ushered in a technology revolution in the country and it was most apt to name these centers after him,” Sachin Pilot, state president of Pradesh Congress Committee told the Indian Express.

Responding to the charges, BJP spokesperson Kailash Nath Bhatt said, “We have nothing against Rajiv Gandhi but the Congress had gone overboard naming all schemes and initiatives after Indira and Rajiv Gandhi alone. It was their mistake and we are merely rectifying it. People in large numbers have appreciated the move. Let some of the schemes and places be named after other tall leaders too. Why should only Indira and Rajiv Gandhi be glorified?”

The Seva and Suvidha Kendra are centers in villages that are being used as spaces for filing applications for job cards, complaints, NREGA, muster roll scrutiny and other information technology related work. The centers have served as an important spot for grievance redressal and during the Ashok Gehlot government names of beneficiaries under Indira Awas Yojana or Chief Minister Housing Scheme and other major schemes were written on the walls of the center’s building for ensure transparency and convenience.