Maharashtra's Shiv Sena slams BJP for demanding to rename Aurangabad to Sambhaji Nagar

Mumbai, Mar 02: Shiv Sena slammed Maharashtra BJP unit president Chandrakant Patil on Monday after he demanded to rename Aurangabad to Sambhaji Nagar. The Sena also criticised the party for not changing it when the BJP was in power.

Shiv Sena, in its mouthpiece Saamana, mocked Patil and reminded him that Sena founder Bal Thackeray had publicly renamed Aurangabad as Sambhaji Nagar 25 years ago. Shiv Sena also accused the nation's single-largest party of using Veer Savarkar and the Maratha warrior king Shivaji for political benefits.

Attacking BJP, the Sena said that Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath renamed Allahabad and Faizabad after coming to power, but Maharashtra BJP could not rechristen Aurangabad despite it being in power in Centre as well as in the State.

"In Maharashtra, there is no meaning left in the behaviour and talk of BJP. Chandrakant Patil is also following the footsteps of Fadnavis in talking where it is not necessary. You had your government in Maharashtra as well as the Centre. Why could you not change the name of Aurangabad to 'Sambhaji Nagar," the editorial said.

Earlier, Patil had asked the Maharashtra government to officially change the name of the city.

"Whether it is Sambhaji Nagar or Savarkar, these issues have been embraced by BJP just for the sake of politics. It was neither able to place one brick for the huge statue of Shivaji Maharaj nor did it give Bharat Ratna to Veer Savarkar," it said.