Kolkata Road Renamed: Congress Accuses BJP of 'Intellectual Bankruptcy' Over Suhrawardy Avenue Change
The West Bengal government, led by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), has renamed Kolkata's Suhrawardy Avenue as 'Gopal Mukherjee Road', sparking criticism from the Congress party. The Congress described the move as an act of 'intellectual bankruptcy'.
The road, located in the Park Circus area, was originally named Suhrawardy Avenue in 1932-33, according to old editions of the Calcutta Municipal Gazette. It was named after Dr. Hassan Suhrawardy, the first Muslim Vice-Chancellor of Calcutta University. However, right-wing groups have long objected to the name, associating it with Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy, a Bengali politician who served as the last Prime Minister of undivided Bengal and later as Prime Minister of Pakistan. Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy has been criticised for his role during the 1946 communal violence, known as the 'Great Calcutta Killings'.
Congress leader Pawan Khera, in a post on X, cited excerpts from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's book on Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee to argue that Dr. Mookerjee, a Hindutva ideologue and founder of the Jana Sangh, had supported Dr. Hassan Suhrawardy. Khera said the BJP's position was inconsistent with its own ideological references, and urged the 'Bhakt-Brigade' to refrain from such actions.
Former Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Jawhar Sircar also criticised the renaming, stating that it showed 'abysmal ignorance' to remove the name of Dr. Hassan Suhrawardy, who was targeted due to confusion with his controversial nephew, Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy. Sircar suggested that the BJP should read history.
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari welcomed the renaming, describing it as the correction of a 'historical wrong'. He said the new name honours Gopal Mukherjee, who 'saved' many Hindu families during the 1946 riots. Adhikari linked the name Suhrawardy to Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy, ignoring the earlier naming of the road after Dr. Hassan Suhrawardy.
The controversy highlights the ongoing debate over historical naming and the intersection of communal politics in West Bengal. The Congress has called for a more informed approach to such decisions, while the BJP defends the move as a step towards acknowledging local heroes.
