On 17 January, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut reiterated that Aurangabad is Sambhajinagar for the party and will remain so.
On being asked why the Congress is opposed to rechristening the city in Maharashtra, Raut told ANI, “I don't know. Maharashtra CM has clearly said that for us, it is Sambhajinagar and will remain so. It's a matter of people's feelings, so we can discuss it but the decision has been taken.”
Ahead of the upcoming civic polls in the state, the alliance partners continues to remain at loggerheads over the issue.
An editorial column in its mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ took a dig at the Congress over its stand, arguing that renaming the city might hurt the vote bank of 'secular parties', ANI reported.
It read, “India’s constitution was secular…Aurangzeb had a strong hatred for other religions. He tortured Sikhs and Hindus. Why should we pay attention to their relics…A political controversy has erupted over renaming of ‘Aurangabad’ to Sambhajinagar in the official documents of Marathwada. Secular parties like the Congress are not in favour of renaming the city. The renaming of Aurangabad will upset the Muslim society, that is, the minority and will affect the vote bank which means that its secular image will be questioned.”
The BJP, which has been on a renaming spree since it came to power, interestingly attacked the Uddhav Thackeray-led government in the state over this issue and asked it to focus on other issues.
(With inputs from ANI)
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