Lucknow: For the second time, the carpet district of Bhadohi will be known as Sant Ravidas Nagar Bhadohi, after the state cabinet cleared a proposal to name it after the 15th-century Dalit saint and preacher.
The move acquires importance ahead of the 2027 assembly polls as BJP has reversed a decision taken by Samajwadi Party’s Akhilesh Yadav in 2014 after he became CM, a clear overture to the state’s Dalit population amid the opposition’s PDA (backward, Dalit, minority) plank. Interestingly, Yadav himself was reversing BSP’s and then BJP govt’s decision to change Bhadohi’s name to Sant Kabir Nagar in 1997. The proposal had been mooted by BSP’s Mayawati when she was CM in 1997 but the formal notification was eventually issued by the Kalyan Singh govt.
At an event in Lucknow last week, chief minister Yogi Adityanath had announced the decision to rename Bhadohi.
Finance minister Suresh Khanna said: “The district will be renamed Sant Ravidas Nagar Bhadohi in memory of and to honour Guru Ravidas Ji, a prominent saint in the Indian spiritual tradition and a social reformer. The govt believes that the renaming will reflect the district’s cultural, social and historical identity. The minister clarified that the renaming process was in accordance with the provisions laid down under the Uttar Pradesh Revenue Code. Following the decision, the process of renaming the district will proceed in accordance with the prescribed procedure, Khanna added.
On Friday, govt said that the decision had been taken to honour the social and cultural contributions of Guru Ravidas.