Taking a cue from Uttar Pradesh, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government in Gujarat is mulling the renaming of Ahmedabad, the largest city in the state. Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel said the city would be renamed as Karnavati if the demand gets enough support from the people.
Patel's comment came a day after Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath renamed Faizabad district as Ayodhya. A few days ago the Yogi government had changed the name of Allahabad to Prayagraj.
“For a long time, there has been a demand to change the name of Ahmedabad and name it to Karnavati. If we get the support of people for the legal process, we are ready to change the name of the city. People of Ahmedabad like the name of Karnavati. We will change the name at an appropriate time,” Patel said, according to an ANI report.
He further said: “Karnavati has been in use in numerous ways and people are used to it. People of Gujarat and people of Amdavad like the name. So, it can always be considered.”
Patel also welcomed the Uttar Pradesh government's decision to rename the cities.
The opposition, however, Congress hit out at the government's move, calling it another “poll gimmick”.
“For the BJP, issues like construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya and renaming Ahmedabad as Karnavati are the means to get votes of Hindus,” said Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi.
Ahmedabad is located on the banks of the river Sabarmati, 30km from the state capital Gandhinagar.
Historically, the area around Ahmedabad has been inhabited since the 11th century, when it was known as Ashaval. Chaulukya ruler Karna of Anhilwara (modern Patan) had waged a successful war against the Bhil King of Ashaval and established a city called Karnavati on the banks of the Sabarmati river.
Sultan Ahmed Shah in 1411 A.D. had laid the foundation of a new walled city near Karnavati and named it Ahmedabad after the four saints in the area by the name Ahmed.
