It's all in the name! Delhi netas swamp MCD with road renaming pleas | Deep Dive

What's in a name? Well, everything - if you ask the Capital's municipal leaders, councillors and MLAs who have unleashed a barrage of renaming requests this year.

On an average, according to Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) figures, the Capital's three civic bodies receive about 300 requests every year for renaming roads, parks or community centres from local leaders and satraps. But in 2019, the number has already crossed 449.

As things stand, South MCD has received 181 such recommendations, of which 140 have been approved. The North MCD has already got 94 recommendations this year and the number of name-change requests with the East MCD stood at 174, out of which 106 have got the nod of the 'naming committee'.

Most such recommendations come from municipal leaders who want to bask in reflected glory by associating the name of a family member with a road or a park. Consider this: Last year, North MCD Mayor Adesh Gupta named a road after his grandfather Puran Chandra Yogi. Earlier, a road in Karol Bagh was named after former MCD councillor Madanlal Kapoor. Two roads were named respectively as Shankarlal Marg and Rati Devi Marg in Sultanpur, after the father and mother of former Congress MLA Jai Kishan.

A road was named after former MLA Bhai Bharat Singh of the Indian National Lok Dal in Najafgarh and a road in Timarpur was renamed Chaudhary Surender Singh Marg, after the father-in-law of former municipal councillor Sunita Chowdhary. "You do not rename roads or parks just because you are related to certain people. People who have contributed to the society deserve a landmark in their name. All the roads or parks that have been named during my tenure were after people who served the society well," says Adesh Gupta in his defence.

POLL PUSH

Bhupendra Gupta, chairman of the Standing Committee of South MCD, says the demand to rename roads and parks has shot up in the runup to the Assembly elections, likely to be held early next year. "With the elections expected in a few months, the number of such recommendations has increased suddenly. But we will follow proper procedure while considering these requests," he said.

Some renaming attempts by fringe elements have added fuel to fire. This Saturday, for example, a signboard for Babar Road at central Delhi's high-security zone was blackened by members of the Hindu Sena, a Right-wing group. They were seeking to change the road's name forcibly. Located in the heart of Delhi, close to the iconic Connaught Place, Babar Road is named after the first emperor of the Mughal dynasty in India. The Hindu Sena demanded that it be renamed after a "great Indian personality."

"This forced renaming of roads doesn't make sense to me. If you want to pay tribute to someone, why not built something else after him or her?" asks historian Sohail Hashmi, who conducts heritage walks in the Capital. "We cannot allow hooligans to take the law in their hands," he said.

POLITICS OVER RENAMING

The renaming pleas, at times, spark political controversies as well. Last week, the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) objected to the North Delhi Municipal Corporation's move to rename a road in Narela from Gandhi Ashram Marg to Lala Jagannath Bansal Road. The Congress charged that it was being done at the behest of the BJP which rules all MCDs in Delhi.

"Narela has a prominent place in the history of India's freedom movement. Mahatma Gandhi visited this area twice, in 1930 and 1935, and established an ashram which served as a hideout for freedom fighters and a place for discussions on the Quit India movement. That is how the road came to be called 'Gandhi Ashram Marg' and it is mentioned as such in the old signboards of the MCD and Aadhaar cards of local residents," said DPCC working president Rajesh Lilothia.

Members of North MCD, however, maintain that the name was changed after going through proper procedures. "It was only informally called Gandhi Ashram Marg and never had a name, as per official documents. Also, the proposal went through the road-naming committee of the North Corporation, which has members from the Opposition as well as the House. Why wasn't any objection raised at that time?" asks Narela Councillor Savita Khatri of the BJP.

"There have been many cases where councillors have named streets after their family members," said Andrews Ganj councillor Abhishek Dutt of the Congress. "It is not a good sign. We have seen many cases where the name of a genuinely eligible personality has been rejected and the name of a family member approved," he added.

Last year, the MCD had proposed to rename the historic Ramlila Maidan in Delhi after former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. However, later, the civic body dragged its feet on the matter.

Similarly, the proposal to name a (second) road after Congress leader Rajesh Pilot was rejected by the MCD last year, but the proposal to name a park in Lajpat Nagar after Rajesh Khanna was passed.

"The Municipal Corporation only has the right to change names of roads, parks, community centres and schools. The most important condition for changing the name is that the person after whom the road will be named] should have made some contribution to society,"

said Kamaljit Sehrawat, leader of South Delhi Municipal Corporation. "It is true that some councillors want to name roads after their relatives, but requests of whomsoever is eligible can only be approved," she added. Senior Aam Aadmi Party leader and MP Sanjay Singh considers the business of renaming roads a colossal waste of time.

"I do not mind it as long as the renaming happens after following proper procedure in the elected house of representatives. But there is no place, whatsoever, for hooliganism," he said. "The Municipal Corporation of Delhi has the right to change the names of streets, parks or community centers under its jurisdiction," he added.