UP Minister dares BJP to change names of its Muslim leaders before renaming cities

Rajbhar heads the Suheldev Bahujan Samaj Party (SBSP), a BJP ally in Uttar Pradesh.

Uttar Pradesh minister Om Prakash Rajbhar. File Photo

NE DELHI: Uttar Pradesh minister Om Prakash Rajbhar, a BJP ally, has slammed the saffron party for its renaming spree and suggested it to change the names of its three prominent Muslim leaders. "The BJP says that the cities were named after Mughals. In the BJP, there is Shahnawaz Hussain, who is the national spokesperson; Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, who is a Union Cabinet minister; and, in UP, there is Mohsin Raza, who is minister of state in the Yogi Adityanath government. First, the names of these three persons should be changed," Rajbhar said. Rajbhar heads the Suheldev Bahujan Samaj Party (SBSP), a BJP ally in Uttar Pradesh. "The GT Road, which was built by a Muslim king, should be uprooted. After all, it was built by Sher Shah Suri. Why do you allow people to use that road? Similarly, the Red Fort in Delhi and Taj Mahal. Who built them?" asked Rajbhar. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had announced on announced on Tuesday that Faizabad district would be known as Ayodhya. Last month, the state government has renamed the historic city of Allahabad as Prayagraj. When contacted, Rajbhar told PTI: "There is no point in renaming the districts of the state. The work which was done by the Bahujan Samaj Party, Samajwadi Party and Congress, the same is being repeated by the BJP. There is nothing new in it." However, UP BJP spokesperson Manish Shukla said though Rajbhar was entitled to have his views as a minister, but should refrain from making such remarks. "Faizabad and Allahabad were renamed as Ayodhya and Prayagraj respectively as per the sanctity of these places. It was only a corrective action, as centuries ago invaders with polluted mentality had changed the names of these places," the spokesperson claimed. (With inputs from PTI)