The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led government has once again executed another episode of rewriting history by changing names of places named after Moghuls or the British rulers.
This time it is Port Blair, capital of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. It has been renamed as Sri Vijaya Puram, as Union Home Minister Amit Shah confirmed in a post on X today that the decision was executed to realize “Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision to free the nation from colonial imprints”.
In a post on X, Amit Shah stated that Sri Vijaya Puram had an “unparalleled place in our freedom struggle and history”. He also said the new name symbolized the victory achieved in the freedom struggle.
“While the earlier name had a colonial legacy, Sri Vijaya Puram symbolizes the victory achieved in our freedom struggle and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands’ unique role in the same,” he posted on X.
Further he wrote, “It is also the place that hosted the first unfurling of our tiranga (tricolour) by Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Ji and also the cellular jail in which Veer Savarkar Ji and other freedom fighters struggled for an independent nation.”
Port Blair was named after British colonial navy official of the East India Company Captain Archibald Blair.
“Andaman and Nicobar Islands have an unparalleled place in our freedom struggle and history. The island territory that once served as the naval base of the Chola Empire is today poised to be the critical base for our strategic and development aspirations,” Shah further added.
PM Modi said Sri Vijaya Puram honoured the rich history and heroic people of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. “It also reflects our commitment to break free from the colonial mindset and celebrate our heritage,” Modi posted on X.
