Ex-minister urges CM to rename ‘Delhi’ as ‘Dilli’

Ahead of the unveiling of the Delhi Government’s new official logo in November, former Union Minister Vijay Goel has written to Chief Minister Rekha Gupta urging her to replace the English spelling of ‘Delhi’ with ‘Dilli’ in the new logo and all future government documents.

Goel, who had raised a similar proposal in the Rajya Sabha in 2019, said the change would reflect the city’s true cultural and historical identity. “For centuries, poets, writers and citizens have lovingly called the city ‘Dilli’. The name embodies our sentiment, tradition and authentic identity,” he said. “The current English name ‘Delhi’ is a remnant of British colonial rule which neither matches the Hindi pronunciation nor reflects our cultural soul.”

Citing examples of other cities that reverted to their traditional names—Bombay to Mumbai, Calcutta to Kolkata and Madras to Chennai—Goel said earlier objections regarding cost and inconvenience had proved unfounded. “Just like those names are now proudly accepted, changing ‘Delhi’ to ‘Dilli’ would be a natural and justified correction,” he added.

Tracing the name’s origin, Goel explained that ‘Dilli’ comes from the Sanskrit word Dhillika or Dhilli, the name of the city founded by the Tomar kings in the 11th century. “Over time, it evolved into ‘Dilli’, and during the Sultanate and Mughal periods, Persian historians referred to it as ‘Dihli’. It was during British rule that the Persian version was adopted and anglicised to ‘Delhi’, which then became the official name,” he noted.

Highlighting the city’s linguistic roots, Goel said, “In all Indian languages including Hindi, Urdu, Punjabi and Haryanvi, the city has always been known as ‘Dilli’. The name represents the emotional bond and cultural identity of the people.”

He added that with the Delhi Government set to unveil its new logo, this was the perfect moment to restore the Capital’s original Indian identity. “Including the word ‘Dilli’,” he said, “will reconnect emotionally with millions who proudly say, ‘Dilli Meri Jaan.’”

Concluding his appeal, Goel urged the CM to officially adopt the spelling ‘Dilli’ across all government communications, signage and public usage, calling it “a small yet meaningful step to reaffirm pride in the city’s heritage, language and living history.”