Page 48 - 30NOV2018E

OpiniOn

Name change changes

nothing on the ground

Changing the names of places seems to be aimed at distracting
dilemmas public attention from the ground realities turning horrifying, to veil
the murky deals and camouflage the no-development scenario
HumrA
QurAISHI
hat hit was this latest And with the likes of Giriraj Singh,
news report on the who happens to be a minister in the Modi
The Delhi-based writer name changing gim- Cabinet, more than uttering communal
and columnist’s books mick by the rulers poisoning along the strain that names of
include Kashmir: The of the day. Well, the all those locales and localities, equipped
Untold Story. She co- W next victim could with Mughal sounding names, ought
authored a series of be Shimla, as efforts are on to rename to be changed, we can be in for severe
writings with the late it — Shyamala! Tell me, after this name shockers! What better can be expected
Khushwant Singh and change, will residents of this hill sta- when fascist forces are ruling this land!
her short stories are tion get better civic amenities or lessen In fact, it’s not really surprising that each
part of anthologies. its monkey-population or get adequate time the likes of Giriraj Singh come up
The views expressed water supply! with provocative statements there is no
are her own Shimla, once-upon-a-time called one to cry halt and stop the sheer poison
the queen of hill stations, has been in getting unleashed.
news for all the wrong reasons. And Tomorrow, these frenzied rulers could
now comes this name change shocker. attack minority communities along the
Sit back and ponder the offshoots this alibi that their names and surnames
is bound to drag along — The Shimla sound too videshi! If you recall the hue
Accord will get changed to the Shyamala and cry that erupted after Saif Ali Khan
Accord. Your travel plans would have to and Kareena named their son Taimur.
carry an additional set of words along the There were television discussions and
strain — going to Shyamala… the hill sta- heated debates on this! With one of
tion! And, of course, all those file jottings the Hindutva characters even going
and archival aspects will go through end- ahead to say that the baby should have
less rounds of confusing turns and twists. been named Sameer. Why? Because
Why is the government of the day hell such a name would be ‘okay’ for Hindu
bent on changing names of our towns sentiments!
and cities and villages? Perhaps, to dis- If this name changing gimmick is not
tract us from the ground realities turn- halted immediately, then it could pave
ing horrifying, to veil the murky deals way for anarchy. What if the political
coming to the fore, to camouflage the mafia demands or commands to change
no-development scenario, to hoodwink the name of the Taj Mahal, Fatehpur Sikri,
the naïve, to add another layer to the Humayun’s Tomb, Lal Qila, Purana Qila,
chaos spreading out…In fact, it shouldn’t Jama Masjid…the list is long as the succes-
come as a shocker if the Right-Wing sive Mughal emperors had ruled Hindu-
government decides to re-name even stan not as conquerors but as kings who
institutions and offices and departments. connected with the land and its people.
They could begin with re-naming the CBI That probably explains why Mughal em-
and with that try and distract us all with perors built magnificent monuments and
the blatant corruption taking place; what, well laid out gardens in many mofussil
with the political who’s who not even towns and cities of this country. Don’t tell
sparing the country’s top investigative me the Right Wing rulers will scrap the
agency. Mughal Gardens from prominent locales!

Tehelka / 15 november 2018 48 www.Tehelka.com

48-49 Opinion Humra.indd 2 02/11/18 11:36 AM