Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday dropped a major hint that Allahabad will be renamed as “Prayagraj’ “if everyone agrees”. The BJP government’s plan of rechristening the key administrative city of the state has drawn flak from the Congress and could pave the way for political and cultural debate in times to come. While Congress claimed that such a move will affect the history, BJP has lauded the suggestion saying that it would remove “Akbar ki Nishani” and bring back the “age-old identity” of Allahabad being Prayagraj.
“It might be the wish of many people that Allahabad can be renamed as Prayagraj. I think that it will give a very good message. If everyone agrees, we should know this city as Prayag Raj and it can be a good start,” CM Adityanath was quoted as saying by ANI.
In an official statement, BJP state spokesperson Manoj Mishra said that doing away with the symbol of Akbar and lending a historical name to the city is a welcome move (Akbar ki Nishani Ko mita kar pauranik naam dena shreyaskar hai.) Mishra also said that the announcement has come keeping in mind the sentiments of “lakhs and crores” of people of the state.
Allahabad is one of the largest cities of Uttar Pradesh and holds cultural and religious importance as the confluence of Ganga, Yamuna and the invisible Saraswati. As the debate sparks off over the renaming, let’s take a look at how the city got its name.
“The earlier settlements of the Aryans were established in this city, then known as Prayag” Prayagasya Praveshshu Papam Nashwati Tatkshanam,” according to The Uttar Pradesh government site https://allahabad.nic.in/history/. The site, referring to Hindu mythology, says that Lord Brahma chose a land on earth to perform ‘Prakrista Yag’ and hailed that land as “Tirth raj”. Prayag is also considered as the birthplace of Som, Varuna and Prjapati, according to the information provided by Uttar Pradesh government.
Other than the mythological relevance, the government has also underlined its historical lineage. In 1575 AD, then Emperor Akbar founded the city. “Impressed with the strategic importance of the SANGAM”, Akbar named it “ILLAHABAS” which meant “The City of Allaha”, the website states. After remaining as the Provincial capital of the Mughals, it was captured by Marathas.
In 1801 AD, the Nawab of Oudh ceded it to the British and they started using the fort in the city for their military purposes. In 1858 AD, the British Government named the city as “ALLAHABAD”. Allahabad was made the capital of United Province of Agra and Oudh.