Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday said that names of places which are not in accordance with the state’s “culture and tradition” will be changed, reported The Assam Tribune. He said that a portal will be launched for people to make suggestions.
Sarma was speaking at the ground breaking ceremony of a medical college in Guwahati’s Kalapahar region on Tuesday. He said that as Kalapahar was named after a Muslim general, the new campus would be named Pragjyotishpur Medical College.
Pragjyotishpur is the region’s ancient name, according to The Assam Tribune.
“There are places which are named out of malice in some communities,” The Economic Times quoted Sarma as saying. “This has to change.”
The chief minister said that Kalapahar, a Muslim general of the Karrani dynasty which ruled during the Bengal Sultanate’s regime between the 14th and 16th century, had attacked the Kamakhya Temple, located close to Guwahati along the banks of the Brahmaputra river.
Sarma said that the name of the region needed to be changed and that he had asked the local MLA to speak to people and come up with suggestions on the matter.
Also read: Why a Muslim MP was forced to challenge Assam chief minister’s hateful propaganda
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