Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani. (Source: File Photo) Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani. (Source: File Photo)

Citing an online petition against Chief Minster Vijay Rupani’s move to rename Ahmedabad as Karnavati, the Congress on Monday hit out at the BJP government, saying that people’s feelings were associated with Ahmedabad for generations. However, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) issued a warning against those opposing the renaming of the city.

“The people of Ahmedabad have taken up a movement to ensure that the city’s name is not changed… Ahmedabad is a historic city. UNESCO has given it the prestigious tag of Heritage City. We all take pride in being residents of this city. People’s feelings are associated with this city for generations,” state Congress chief Amit Chavda told reporters here.

The Congress for the first time broke its silence over the issue since the Chief Minister’s November 8 statement when he had said that the name of Ahmedabad could be changed before next year’s Lok Sabha elections, claiming that “it was the people’s long-pending demand”.

“People have been demanding for long that Ahmedabad be renamed as Karnavati. The government is considering the demand. The consultation process has started (to find out) if legally we can do it. After the consultations, we will take a concrete step,” the Chief Minister had said on November 8, after another BJP chief minister, Yogi Adityanath of Uttar Pradesh, changed the name of Faizabad to Ayodhya.

Congress MLA Gyasuddin Shaikh also shot off a letter to Rupani on Monday, threatening to launch a stir if the BJP government went ahead with the name change. Shaikh, who represents Dariyapur constituency in Ahmedabad, accused the BJP government of trying to polarise voters ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. “This city was established by Sultan Ahmed Shah in 1411. The ruling BJP is indulging in dirty politics by projecting a twisted version of history. The people of Ahmedabad are also against such a move to change its name, which is only aimed at polarising the voters ahead of the 2019 polls,” the Congress MLA wrote. “Ahmedabad is a well accepted name among the masses. The renaming will adversely affect the communal harmony and peaceful atmosphere of the city. Such dirty politics must end. I will launch a stir against such politics of polarisation,” Shaikh wrote.

On Saturday, speaking at an event held at Ahmedabad Book Club, Congress MP from Kerala, Shashi Tharoor, had expressed his concerns over the name-changing spree. “The renamings are explicitly of places that are Muslim in origin. What is the message you seek to send to a community of our country — that you have less rights, less stake in this society than we the Hindus have?… It is an anti-national thing …and what is frightening is that somehow we absorb and accept one episode after another, and finally, there will be no Muslim named places left in India and our Muslim brothers will be asking “do we belong (here)?’,” Tharoor has said during a discussion on his book “Why I am a Hindu”.

Meanwhile, the VHP issued a warning, saying “Hindus” would not “tolerate” any attempt to stall the process of renaming Ahmedabad. Without naming the Congress leaders, the outfit’s Gujarat unit chief Ashok Raval said that “public life of people opposing renaming of Ahmedabad will be finished by Hindu society.” “We have learnt that some Babur devotees are creating obstacles. We want to warn them that Hindus will end their political career if they do not stop their activities,” the VHP statement read. With PTI

📣 The Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines

For all the latest Ahmedabad News, download Indian Express App.