BJP MLA Brijesh Singh’s posters rename Muslim-dominated Deoband as Deovrind  

The name change was noticed in posters that were put across Saharanpur district of Uttar Pradesh. The posters showed a picture of Singh thanking voters after the recent victory. The renaming has however, irked the sizeable Muslim population in the district.

Written by: Sandhya Dangwal

Updated: March 22, 2017, 10:30 AM IST

Share

Share Article

• Facebook
• WhatsApp
• X
• Email
• Telegram
• Linkedin

https://www.india.com/news/india/bjp-mla-brijesh-singhs-posters-rename-muslim-dominated-deoband-as-deovrind-1949170/ Copy

BJP MLA Brijesh Singh’s posters rename Muslim-dominated Deoband as Deovrind (Image: India Today)

Saharanpur, March 22: After the recent sweeping victory in Uttar Pradesh Assembly Elections, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Brijesh Singh has renamed Deoband as Deovrind in posters, calling it all part of development. The name change was noticed in posters that were put across Saharanpur district of Uttar Pradesh. The posters showed a picture of Singh thanking voters after the recent victory. The renaming has, however, irked the sizeable Muslim population in the district.

Singh said he wanted to rename Deoband to Deovrind and it was all a part of development. “I have no such intention that can connect it to any Islamic institution; all I want is to rename Deoband to Deovrind. It is all about development,” Singh was quoted by India Today when asked about the posters. Singh said that it was in Deoband where Yaksha asked crucial questions to Yudhishthir. He added Rankhandi Jakhwala and Jadoda Panda bear testimony to Deoband’s historical connections. The MLA had demanded that the city to be renamed as Deovrind after BJP came into power in the state. (ALSO READ: If Yogi Adityanath bans slaughterhouses, Uttar Pradesh would lose Rs 11,350 crore a year; here’s how)

The Deoband city in Saharanpur has voted BJP after 21 years where Singh defeated BSP’s Majid Ali and SP’s Mavia Ali by 1, 02,244 votes. Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Vikas Tyagi backed MLA Brijesh Singh’s move and said, “We not only want Deoband to be renamed as Devvrand, but also want all those places to be renamed which was once under Mughal rule. We want this to be done under the BJP government.”

The name changing decision didn’t really go well with the Muslim population in the district. Maulana rshad Madani, president of Jamat Ulema-E-Hind said it doesn’t matter even the name is changed a thousand times. “Deoband will always be known because of Darul Uloom”, he said. Due to the eminence of Darul Uloom, Deoband sees an influx of students who come for Islamic learning.