The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has ramped up efforts to reclaim what it asserts as the true historical identity of various regions in Delhi, alleging that Mughal rulers systematically altered indigenous names to erase India’s cultural heritage. The latest demand comes from Najafgarh, where BJP MLA Neelam Pahalwan has proposed renaming it ‘Nahargarh,’ claiming that the area’s original identity was deliberately changed under Mughal rule, particularly by Aurangzeb.
Delhi: Speaking in the Assembly, BJP MLA Neelam Pahalwan says, "In the 1857 revolt, Raja Nahar Singh fought and included the Najafgarh region in Delhi's territory. Despite several petitions and efforts, including through Parvesh Verma, who was our MP, we have tried to change the… pic.twitter.com/BIIEtyLnnB
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Addressing the Delhi Assembly, Pahalwan emphasised, “Najafgarh suffered under the Mughal rule, especially during Alam II’s reign. Raja Nahar Singh played a pivotal role in reclaiming this region, and we must restore its true name. For far too long, colonial and Mughal-era distortions have been imposed upon us, and we are determined to correct them.” Pahalwan, who secured victory in the recent elections with a significant margin of over 29,000 votes, asserted that efforts to rename the constituency have been ongoing for years.
Historical records suggest that Najafgarh was originally known as Masudabad, as documented in Abul Fazl’s Ain-i-Akbari. The name change came after Mughal emperor Shah Alam II awarded the region to Mirza Najaf Khan, a Persian-origin Mughal noble. Noted historian Narayani Gupta states that Najafgarh’s present-day police station stands on what was once Najaf Khan’s personal residence.
BJP leaders argue that such renaming by the Mughals was a systematic effort to erase Bharatiya history and replace it with Persian and Islamic nomenclature. This ideological battle is not confined to Najafgarh alone. BJP MLA from RK Puram, Anil Sharma, has demanded that Mohammadpur be renamed ‘Madhavpuram,’ while Mohan Singh Bisht, the newly elected MLA from Mustafabad, has pledged to rename his constituency as ‘Shiv Puri’ or ‘Shiv Vihar.’
Mohan Singh Bisht, a veteran BJP leader, did not mince words, stating, “Why should an area with a predominantly Hindu population continue to bear the name Mustafabad? Why should our heritage be overshadowed by the remnants of foreign rule? The people find this name troubling, and we will ensure that it is changed.” His recent electoral victory, achieved by defeating AAP’s Adeel Ahmad by a margin of over 17,500 votes, has only reinforced the BJP’s push to rename places across Delhi.
This movement to restore ‘original’ names aligns with the BJP’s broader strategy of decolonisation, as evidenced by previous renaming efforts in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. The party maintains that these initiatives are necessary to correct historical distortions imposed under Islamic rule and the British Raj.
In August 2018, the historic Mughalsarai Junction Railway Station in Uttar Pradesh after Deen Dayal Upadhyaya, likely due to its reference to the Mughal dynasty. Three years earlier, in May 2015, New Delhi saw the removal of street signs bearing Urdu and Islamic names, including the renaming of Aurangzeb Road to APJ Abdul Kalam Road.
In April 2016, Haryana followed suit by renaming Gurgaon as Gurugram after Guru Dronacharya. Additionally, the BJP government had also proposed renaming airports in Bareilly, Kanpur, and Agra.
Furthermore, the restoration of indigenous city names—such as Bombay to Mumbai, Bangalore to Bengaluru, and Calcutta to Kolkata—reflects a broader nationalist effort to break away from colonial-era linguistic impositions. Other cities, like Cawnpore and Jubblepore, were changed to Kanpur and Jabalpur, respectively, to reflect native pronunciation.
