West Bengal Panel Mulls Renaming Iconic Kolkata Thoroughfares
A committee tasked by the West Bengal administration is currently evaluating proposals to rename several significant public landmarks, roads, and bridges across the state. Among the sites under review are three major Kolkata thoroughfares that currently bear the names of communist icons: Lenin Sarani, Karl Marx Sarani, and Ho Chi Minh Sarani.
Advisory Panel Sets Post-Puja Agenda
The 10-member advisory committee, chaired by Swami Pradiptananda—widely recognized as Kartik Maharaj of the Bharat Sevashram Sangha—is slated to convene its inaugural meeting following the conclusion of the Durga Puja festival in October.
Senior BJP leader and committee member Tathagata Roy confirmed that while no formal decisions have been finalized, the panel intends to submit a series of recommendations to the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) for consideration.
“All these are recommendatory to be submitted after the Pujas for a final decision by the KMC,” Roy stated.
Proposed Changes and Strategic Rationale
The proposed renaming campaign aims to move away from international ideological figures toward personalities with stronger local or nationalist ties.
Roy, a former Governor of Meghalaya, suggested renaming Karl Marx Sarani in Kidderpore after noted Bengali poets such as Michael Madhusudan Dutt or Rangalal Bandyopadhyay, citing their historical connection to the vicinity. Similarly, he proposed that Lenin Sarani—historically known as Dharmatala Street—be rechristened to honor the mathematician and former Bharatiya Jana Sangh president, Debaprasad Ghosh.
Regarding Ho Chi Minh Sarani, Roy suggested replacing the Vietnamese leader’s name with that of American civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. Furthermore, he advocated for renaming certain transit hubs, including a bus stand in Barasat, to reflect the legacies of regional intellectual figures like Qazi Abdul Wadud and Begum Rokeya.
Beyond road names, Roy has also urged the Metro Railway authorities to rename specific stations along the Blue Line based on their geographic locations rather than individual personalities, arguing that place-based naming conventions would better assist the commuting public.
Political Backlash and Tensions
The proposals have triggered immediate opposition from the Trinamool Congress (TMC). Party spokesperson Kunal Ghosh condemned the initiative as “vendetta politics,” warning that the removal of names like Lenin Sarani would signal an alarming intolerance toward differing philosophies.
“If they try to change the name of Lenin Sarani, it will not merely be about Comrade Lenin. Such an attitude will show that they are in no way willing to show tolerance or respect towards distinguished people who hold different beliefs,” Ghosh remarked.
While the TMC and CPI(M) have long maintained significant ideological differences, the former has signaled that it would resist any attempt to erase these historical markers. Ghosh emphasized that the TMC had established a tradition of honoring distinguished figures through urban naming, whereas he alleged the current BJP-led initiative is driven by a “destructive” climate intended to diminish that cultural legacy.
As the committee prepares for its October deliberations, the debate over the city’s nomenclature underscores a broader struggle over historical identity and political representation in West Bengal.
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