Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel on Tuesday said that the state government is keen on renaming Ahmedabad as Karnavati, if it receives the required support and there were no legal hurdles.
Notably, the statement from Gujarat Deputy CM Nitin Patel comes hours after Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath rechristened Faizabad district as Ayodhya. The BJP government in the northern state had already renamed Allahabad as Prayagraj.
Speaking to reporters in Gandhinagar, Nitin Patel said that the state government was willing to change Ahmedabad’s name if it gets past the legal hurdles and receives required support of people. He said, “People are still having a feeling that Ahmedabad should be renamed as Karnavati. If we get required support to overcome the legal hurdles, we are always ready to change the name of the city.” “We can think of changing the name at an appropriate time,” Patel added.
Meanwhile, Gujarat unit Congress slammed BJP. State Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi said the promise to rename Ahmedabad was just another poll gimmick by the ruling party. “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,” he added.
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. However, Sultan Ahmed Shah in 1411 AD 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.
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