Renaming of cities jurisdiction of Centre: Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray

This was Thackeray’s response to BJP's Yogesh Sagar query in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said the proposal to rename Aurangabad to Sambhaji Nagar is being sent to the Centre, as that process is under the jurisdiction of the Union government and not state governments.

Thackeray’s response came in the form of a written reply to BJP's Yogesh Sagar query in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly. In the reply, Thackeray said a detailed proposal for renaming Aurangabad as Sambhajinagar was received from the Divisional Commissioner on March 4, 2020.

The renaming of Aurangabad has caused a rumble within the Maha Vikas Aghadi with the Shiv Sena rooting for it while the Congress vehemently opposing it, as the Sharad Pawar-led NCP maintains a neutral stand.

The opposition BJP and Raj Thackeray-led MNS questioned Shiv Sena’s commitment to the issue and its Hindutva credentials.

The All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM) has opposed the demand.

It needs to be mentioned that the elections to the Aurangabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) are scheduled this year and this issue is dominating the political scene of the historic town of the Marathwada region.

Read | Nothing new in calling Aurangabad as Sambhajinagar: Uddhav Thackeray

Shedding light on the legal history of the case, the CM said the Revenue/Forest and the Urban Development Department had issued a notification for renaming the city on November 9,1995. The notification was challenged by Mohammed Mushtaq Ahmed in the Aurangabad bench of the Bombay High Court, which was quashed. The Supreme Court on January 17, 1996, ordered a status quo.

The Revenue/Forest and Urban development departments scrapped their notification on September 6 and October 10, 2001, respectively, as per the decision of the state cabinet on June 26, 2001.

Thackeray pointed out that considering the legal background of the case, the opinion of the law and judiciary department is being sought. “After all the approvals are taken, the proposal of the Aurangabad Divisional Commissioner will be sent to the Centre,’’ he said.

The Aurangabad district is also the tourism capital of the state with UNESCO World Heritage Sites of Ajanta and Ellora and mediaeval structures like Bibi ka Maqbara.

Mughal emperor Aurangzeb had renamed the city as Aurangzeb in 1653. However, popular demand is to name it as Sambhaji Nagar after Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, who was tortured to death at the behest of Aurangzeb in 1689. Sambhaji Maharaj was the son of legendary Maratha warrior Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.