Rashtriya Muslim Manch welcomes renaming of Mughal Garden, Oppn mocks

Welcoming President Droupadi Murmu’s decision to rename all of Rashtrapati Bhavan’s gardens, including the Mughal Garden, as ‘Amrit Udyan,’ Muslim Rashtriya Manch, a Muslim wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), said on Saturday that the new name represents ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’.

Shahid Saeed, the National Media Incharge of the RSS’ Muslim wing, stated that ‘Amrit’ denotes power that is immortal or is associated with the gods. As a result, the ‘Udyan’ is given enormous importance and breadth.

He said, “Amrit Udyan is the eternal idea of India, which reflects ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (the world is one family)’. It reminds me of the ancient sages of India. 5000 years ago, Lord Shri Krishna inspired Arjuna to establish Indraprastha in place of Khandavprastha at this very place.”

On the other hand, opposition opened a series of attacks on the Central government. BSP chief Mayawati on Sunday took a dig at the government, asking if the “problems” of the country and its people will go away by changing names.

The Congress did not officially react to the name change but the Trinamool Congress and CPI rubbished the move with the Left party terming it an “attempt to rewrite history”

TMC Rajya Sabha MP Jawhar Sircar on Sunday posted a sarcastic tweet, saying: “Waiting for Mughlai Paratha to be renamed Swarga Lok or Indra Lok Paratha”.

Union ministers and BJP leaders, meanwhile, defended the decision by calling it a move towards a “new India”.

Union Rural Development Minister Giriraj Singh praised the action, stating that the country should commemorate its independence in a meaningful way. Members of the Rashtriya Muslim Manch also praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for naming the Andaman and Nicobar Islands’ 21 largest unidentified islands after national heroes, calling it a good initiative.

“The islands whose names were changed included the names of the British oppressors. Manch believes that it was very sad that the names that were still floating around included the names of British generals ‘Havelock’, ‘Neil’ and ‘Ross’ who crushed Indian freedom fighters and inflicted countless tortures. The Manch believes that the names of such people should not have been mentioned at all. And for this, whatever praise may be given to Narendra Modi is less,” he said.

The Prime Minister dubbed Ross Island Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Dweep during his visit to the island in 2018. Neil Island and Havelock Island were renamed Shaheed Dweep and Swaraj Dweep, respectively.