The name game

Uttarakhand might not be a big player in the BJP’s national scheme of things, but its double-engine government has developed a knack for going into overdrive to make its presence felt and impress the party top brass. The latest move by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami is to rename 17 places in the hill state, ostensibly in accordance with “public sentiment and Indian culture & heritage”. It’s no coincidence that these places have a Muslim/Mughal connection. The timing of the announcement — coinciding with Eid and Navratri celebrations — is also not surprising.

Even as fellow CMs Devendra Fadnavis and Yogi Adityanath have confined themselves to saying that Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s glorification will not be allowed, Dhami has gone way ahead by renaming Haridwar’s Aurangzebpur as Shivaji Nagar. Khanpur, Idrishpur, Akbarpur and Abdullapur are among the other casualties. The bid to erase names that are somehow reminiscent of ‘foreign invaders’ is just a fig leaf to hide the tried-and tested agenda of polarisation.

The rollout of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) — Uttarakhand is the first state to do it — has been viewed by some Muslim groups as a brazen encroachment on their religious freedom. The CM, however, has confidently claimed that the UCC will free “our Muslim sisters from various types of oppression”. He has also termed the sealing of over 150 madrasas in the state as a simple matter of maintaining law and order. The message to the minority community is loud and clear: Fall in line or face the consequences. A state that was ranked first in the country by NITI Aayog last year for achieving sustainable development goals would be well advised to avoid stirring the communal pot. For its own good, ‘Devbhoomi’ should ideally be a place where all communities can live together in harmony.