New Delhi, October 15: Opposition parties in Uttar Pradesh have marked their dissent against the Uttar Pradesh government's proposed move to rename the ancient city of Allahabad as Prayagraj. The Congress called it a ploy of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to shift attention "from his misgovernance", whereas, the Samajwadi Party called it an unnecessary move to deflect attention from the Vivek Tiwari murder case.

In a statement issued by the Congress, the party asked the UP government to explain the rationale behind renaming a city which has earned worldwide recognition under its current name. "Is it an attempt to dilute the historical significance of the city, its importance in the freedom struggle," the party questioned. Allahabad to be Renamed as Prayagraj? Yogi Adityanath Pitches For Change in Name of Uttar Pradesh's Holy City.

Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party supremo Akhilesh Yadav said the proposed move to rename Allahabad as Prayagraj proves that the "Yogi Adityanath government is only capable of renaming things".

In a Twitter post on Monday, Yadav said today's rulers were trying to show that they are working by just changing the name of Allahabad. "... They have even re-named Ardh Kumbh to Kumbh. This is toying with tradition and belief," the former UP CM tweeted.

However, reacting to Yadav, UP Cabinet Minister and BJP spokesperson Shrikant Sharma claimed that the belief of people were hurt when the city was named Allahabad by the erstwhile imperial rulers.

"Some persons are objecting to renaming Allahabad as Prayagraj. The objections are baseless. It is the right of the government to rename any city. If needed, we will rename more cities and roads. The mistakes done earlier will be rectified," he said.

The announcement to change Allahabad as Prayagraj ahead of 2019 Kumbh Mela was made by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath during his visit to the city on Saturday.

Adityanath claimed that UP Governor Ram Naik has already given assent to the decades-long demand of saints and sages to change the name of the Sangam city. "The government will soon send a proposal to the Centre to change the name of the city," the CM had said.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 15, 2018 10:37 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).