Renaming Ramanagara an insult to Lord Ram: Kumaraswamy

Coming down hard on the State government against its proposal to rename Ramanagara as Nava Bengaluru, former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy said that such a move will be an insult to Lord Ram, after whom the district is named. He has also threatened to hit the streets if State government went ahead with the proposal.

In a series of tweets, Kumaraswamy accused that renaming the district was a pretext to sell its fertile irrigated land to capitalists. Yediyurappa also wants to settle a score with me by renaming it, he alleged.

"If Yediyurappa wishes to develop Ramanagara, he should release the funds I have allocated in my budget for the district. If you want to develop it further, you will find support from me and my people. But, don't set fire to the districts' culture and identity by changing its name," he tweeted.

In another tweet, he questioned the logic of renaming the district. "What's in a name? If we call something Bengaluru, will it develop? If so, why can't we rename all other districts as Bengaluru? Can you do that?" he questioned, daring Yediyurappa to rename Shivamogga or Dakshina Kannada district to Bengaluru.

Ramanagar district is surrounded by seven hills, with Ramadevara Betta at its centre. "That is why it was named Ramanagara taluk. We have named it after Rama. Yet, if BJP adamantly renames it, it is an insult to the policies propounded by BJP. It is an insult to Lord Ram's name," he said in another tweet.

The State government should immediately withdraw the proposal, failing which people will be forced to fight against it, he added.

It can be recalled that Ramanagara district was carved out of Bengaluru Rural district in 2007, during the tenure as Kumaraswamy as CM.