The stations are said to have been renamed after a demand was made by former Amethi MP Smriti Irani to preserve the cultural identity and heritage of the place.
Eight railway stations in the Lucknow division of Northern Railways were officially renamed after saints and freedom fighters on Tuesday, a move which drew flak from the Opposition, which said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) should focus on improving the condition of railway stations and preventing train accidents.
The stations are said to have been renamed after a demand was made by former Amethi MP Smriti Irani to preserve the cultural identity and heritage of the place. Irani announced the change of names on social media in March.
According to an order issued by the Northern Railways, the following railway stations have been renamed:
Kasimpur Halt Railway Station will now be known as Jais City Railway Station,
Jais as Guru Gorakhnath Dham,
Misrauli as Maa Kalikan Dham,
Bani as Swami Paramhans,
Nihalgarh Railway Station has been changed to Maharaja Bijli Pasi Railway Station,
Akbarganj to Maa Ahorwa Bhawani Dham,
Warisganj to Amar Shahid Bhale Sultan, and
Fursatganj to Tapeshwarnath Dham.
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Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav hit out at the BJP government over the renaming exercise and said it should instead focus on improving the condition of railway stations and preventing train accidents.
Attacking the Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath-led government of Uttar Pradesh, Akhilesh Yadav said, "The BJP government is requested to also change the condition of railway stations along with the names.
"And when you are done with changing the names, think about preventing record-breaking rail accidents," he said.
Justifying the renaming exercise, a a senior railway official cited in a news agency PTI report said the Kasimpur Halt station was named after Kasimpur village which is quite far away. Therefore, Jais City was proposed as the new name. As prominent Guru Gorakhnath Dham ashram is near the Jais station, it was proposed that the station be renamed after the ashram, he said.
The official said there are several temples of Lord Shiva and Goddess Kali near Mishrauli, Bani, Akbarganj and Fursatganj railway stations and they were renamed accordingly, he said.
The Nihalgarh station is located in an area that has a sizeable population of Pasis who are mostly farmers. Hence, it was renamed after Maharaja Bijli Pasi, a king from the community, the official said.
Warisganj is known for the bravery of Bhale Sultan who fought against the British in 1857 and the station was renamed after him, he added.