Renaming of Rajpath to Kartavya Path ‘pure politics’, says Shashi Tharoor
The renaming of the historic Rajpath to Kartavya Path was “pure politics” as ‘Rajpath’ itself is a Hindi word, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said.
Interacting on the sidelines of a panel discussion on the book, ‘British Takeover of India: Modus Operandi,’ held at the India International Centre here Tuesday evening, Tharoor also said that he was in favour of renaming of places named after “obscure Brits” and name them after Indians, even as he wondered what rechristening of Bombay, Calcutta, and Madras, really accomplished.
“It’s a complicated issue because some places have acquired a certain resonance in the memories of Indians who have grown up with them,” he told PTI when asked about his views on the renaming of streets, cities, and institutions.
A large number of roads, parks, schools, hospitals and other institutions, besides prominent cities, have been renamed in the last 75 years in the name of shedding “colonial baggage.”
Many historians and heritage experts have decried the rechristening of old cities and landmarks over the years, saying it “breaks the continuity of history” and the practice was tantamount to the “erasure of public memories.”
“I am all in favour of renaming of places carrying names of obscure Brits, and instead honouring Indians. But, at some point, I think you have to… For example, renaming of cities like Bombay, Madras and Calcutta, I am not sure what it really accomplished,” Tharoor said.
Bombay and Madras were renamed Mumbai and Chennai in the late 1990s and soon Calcutta was rechristened Kolkata. Later, Poona was renamed Pune, Mysore Mysuru, Bangalore Bengaluru, and the state of Orissa Odisha. Many citizens still refer to these places by their old nomenclatures.
In the capital city of New Delhi, a string of British-era streets, parks, and railway bridges were named after Indian freedom fighters and various other noted personalities soon after August 15, 1947, when India became a free nation.
Prominent streets like Kingsway and Queensway, which run perpendicular to each other in the heart of the capital designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and Sir Herbert Baker, were renamed ‘Rajpath’ and ‘Janpath’ respectively.
