Okay With Renaming Aurangabad Airport, Leave City's Name As It Is: AIMIM

His statement comes a day after Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's proposition to rename the Aurangabad Airport after Maratha ruler Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj. Thackeray urged the Centre to issue a notification to this effect at the earliest. 

In March 2020, the Maharashtra cabinet moved to rename the Aurangabad Airport, situated in Chikhalthana area here, after Sambhaji Maharaj.

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The Shiv Sena, which shares power with the NCP and the Congress in Maharashtra, has been demanding for the past couple of decades that Aurangabad be renamed as Sambhajinagar. However, Congress has said it is against any such move.

Asked about the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen's (AIMIM) stand over the issue, Jaleel told PTI that, "We have no issue with renaming of the Aurangabad airport after Chhatrapati Sambhaji. But, we definitely have a problem with renaming of the city."

"Considering the work of Chhatrapati Sambhaji, why not we rename our new industrial city after him. We also have a world-class Samruddhi Expressway (between Mumbai and Nagpur) which can be renamed after him," the Lok Sabha member said.

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Earlier, on Tuesday, BJP Rajya Sabha member Dr Bhagwat Karad also urged Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri to rename the airport here after Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, saying the latter is the symbol of Maharashtra's self-respect.

Karad also demanded financial aid for the development of areas surrounding some of the heritage sites in Aurangabad.

With PTI inputs