New Delhi, October 15: The Uttar Pradesh government has been under fire ever since the state Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath announced that Allahabad will soon be renamed as 'Prayagraj' ahead of the Kumbh Mela next year. On Sunday, former Chief Justice of Allahabad Delhi and Madras High Court slammed the UP government for its decision to rename Allahabad. Justice Katju took to Facebook to express his disappoint over the decision. He later tweeted his post.

The former Supreme Court judge also suggested Yogi Adityanath of changing names of other 18 districts of the state. Justice Katju said, “Dear @myogiadityanath, Congratulations for renaming Allahabad as Prayag. But surely that is not enough. I recommend the following further name changes of UP cities be made to eliminate names of these Babur ki Aulads altogether.”

The Uttar Pradesh chief minister on Saturday made a strong pitch for changing the name of Allahabad to Prayagraj. Speaking to reporters, Adityanath said if a broad consensus is achieved, Allahabad will be renamed as Prayagraj. Yogi further added, Allahabad is the meeting point of sacred rivers Ganga and Yamuna. Jawaharlal Nehru Statue in Allahabad Shifted For Kumbh Mela, Congress Fumes

The state chief minister also said the state Governor Ram Naik is also in favour of changing the name of Allahabad to Prayagraj. Earlier, deputy chief minister Keshav Prasad Maurya had said the government would rechristen Allahabad as Prayagraj and a decision in this regard could be taken before next year's Kumbh Mela, which will begin in Allahabad on January 15, 2019. According to some media reports, the banners for the upcoming Kumbh Mela in 2019 mention the name of the city as Prayagraj instead of Allahabad.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 16, 2018 12:20 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).