In Uttar Pradesh, BR Ambedkar Becomes Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar
The demand was spearheaded by the Governor over the past few months, who had also written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Lucknow, Mar 29: Dalit icon and father of the Indian Constitution, Dr BR Ambedkar, will now be referred to as Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar in all official documents of the Uttar Pradesh government.
On the recommendation of Governor Ram Naik, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday approved the move to emphasize on Ambedkar's middle name - Ramji.
The government has also made an amendment to Ambedkar's spelling in Hindi, which would now be spelled as 'Aambedkar'. However, the spelling would not be changed in English.
The rationale behind the move is to "correct the pronunciation" in Hindi, said Dr Lalji Prasad Nirmal, director of Babasaheb Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar Mahasabha.
The demand was spearheaded by the Governor over the past few months, who had also written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The Samajwadi Party called the move as "theatrics" by the Yogi Adityanath government, accusing it of attempting to change its perception among the Dalits. "But the community knows the truth that the BJP has always remained anti-Ambedkar," said senior SP leader Deepak Mishra.
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) dismissed any political motive behind the amendment to Ambedkar's name. "The UP government has only decided to refer to the father of our Constitution by his real name. Why should any politics be played over this?" he said while speaking to reporters.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 29, 2018 11:25 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).