Nagpur flyover renaming sparks protests, Congress and BSP hit streets
Congress, BSP and other groups protested after a new Nagpur flyover was named for Dr Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, calling it an insult to Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar.
A row has broken out in Nagpur over the naming of a new 8.9-kilometre flyover built from Kamal Chowk to Dighori. As it was inaugurated, the Congress, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), the Republican Party of India and several social organisations took to the streets in protest against the decision. Protesters said the government's move was an attempt to disturb the city's social atmosphere.
Those involved in the protest alleged that the flyover had been named after a person who had no role in its construction, insulting great social reformers in the process. They said that if the government did not withdraw the name, they would launch both a legal fight and an intense agitation. Anti-government slogans echoed across several parts of the city, including Reshimbagh Chowk and Kamal Chowk.
On Friday night, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had announced that the new flyover would be named the "Dr Keshav Baliram Hedgewar Flyover". Notably, no government agency formally announced this name, but protests erupted in the city as soon as it surfaced.
Ambedkarite organisations said that the then Congress MP Saroj Khapre had got this flyover built from Kamal Chowk to Golibar Chowk, and that it was Nagpur's first flyover. At the time, the stretch from Indora Chowk to Kamal Chowk was named "Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marg" and the flyover itself was named "Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Flyover", names that have continued to this day. These organisations alleged that the current state government had arbitrarily changed the name using its majority strength in a dictatorial manner, which they called a direct insult to Bharat Ratna Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar.
Congress workers also expressed strong anger over the renaming at Kamal Chowk. The protest was attended by a large number of workers, including state Youth Congress leader Kunal Raut, corporator Gautam Ambade, Abhishek Shambharkar, Asif Shaikh, Dinesh Yadav, Manoj Bansod, corporator Kalpana Dronkar, Bandopant Tembhurne, Chetan Tarare and Nilesh Khorgade.
The BSP registered its protest at Reshimbagh Chowk. Police tried through the morning to detain BSP workers, but they evaded custody through the day. By evening, several workers suddenly gathered at Reshimbagh Chowk and began an intense protest. BSP leaders objected to the name Dr Hedgewar and appealed to the government to understand public sentiment, demanding that the flyover instead be named after Babasaheb Ambedkar or Samrat Ashoka. Following this, Ajni police detained 25 to 30 workers, including state general secretary Narajekar, district president Yogesh Lanjewar, city president Aniket Kuttarmare, state secretary Praful Manke, Vivek Hadke and Amit Bansode.
The Republican Party of India (RPI), activists linked to the Ambedkarite movement and social organisations also called the decision an assault on public sentiment that would provoke public anger. Gathering at Kamal Chowk, leaders recalled the history of the city's first flyover and said the road and the flyover had always been identified by Dr Ambedkar's name.
