Kumar Bahukhandi
New Delhi :Union Urban Development Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Friday November 15 , 2024 announced that Sarai Kale Khan Chowk located on Delhi’s Ring Road has been renamed as Bhagwan Birsa Munda Chowk. Delhi’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government has expressed displeasure and raised questions over the name change. However, Arvind Kejriwal welcomed the decision of the central government in a press conference on Friday November 15, 2024 .
Union Minister Manohar Lal Khattar announced the renaming of the square, prompting the AAP government to question whether due process was followed.
However, AAP sources also sought to find out whether the proposal to rename the square was approved by a road naming authority (which controls the process).
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Central government officials, rejecting the AAP government’s claim, said the name “Sarai Kale Khan” was “not present in any government records” related to the capital.
Delhi government officials said the state naming authority has the power to name a place, which is not there in the capital at present as it is yet to be constituted.
A Delhi government official asked, “At present, there is no road naming authority in Delhi, so where did the permission come from to rename Sarai Kale Khan Chowk as Bhagwan Birsa Munda Chowk? This road comes under the PWD of the Delhi government. Where is the order regarding the name change?”
“Sarai Kale Khan is the name of this area and the ISBT will still be known by this name. There was no mention of Sarai Kale Khan in government records. Renaming the square is a first of its kind when it comes to the representation of tribal identity in the capital,” a central government official said.
