Rename Farrukhabad as Panchal Nagar, BJP MP urges Adityanath

Mukesh Rajput said in the times of Mahabharat, the area was called Panchala, the kingdom ruled by Pandava queen Draupadi’s father Drupad

KANPUR BJP MP from Farrukhabad, Mukesh Rajput, on Friday wrote to chief minister Yogi Adityanath, demanding that Farrukhabad district be renamed as Panchal Nagar or Aparkashi.

The MP said his demand was an expression of the sentiments of masses. (Sourced)

Elaborating on the history of the district, the MP said that in the times of the Mahabharat, the area was called Panchala, the kingdom ruled by Pandava queen Draupadi’s father Drupad.

The MP said his demand was an expression of the sentiments of masses. The letter, a copy of which is with HT, was sent to the chief minister on April 1.

“The capital of King Drupad was Kampil, which is located in the district and where Draupadi’s ‘swayamvar’ had taken place,” he wrote. Located close to the Ganga and Ramganga and Kali rivers, the history of Farrukhabad is very rich since the age of Puranas, he said. “The Army of King Drupad used to reside in the cantonment area,” said Rajput.

The MP said Kampil is of religious importance to both Hindus and Jains.

“The first Jain Teerthankar Rishabhadeva had delivered a sermon here. Sankissa is a world-famous pilgrim place for Buddhists. Countries like Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Thailand, Burma (Myanmar) and Japan have built big Baudh Viharas here,” he said.

“Like Kashi, ‘Shivalayas’ (temples of Lord Shiva) exist in every bylane, hence, this city (Farrukhabad) is also called ‘Aparkashi’,” the BJP MP added.

But in 1714, Mughal ruler Farrukhsiyar changed the name of the city to Farrukhabad. “Hence, you are requested that to revive the Indian culture, the name of Farrukhabad district should be changed to Panchal Nagar or Aparkashi,” he wrote.

This is the second time the MP demanded the renaming of Farrukhabad.

The government, in its first term, changed the name of Allahabad to Prayagraj, following which Mughalsarai railway station was named after RSS ideologue Deen Dayal Upadhyay. Similarly, ahead of 2022 assembly elections, Faizabad railway station was rechristened as Ayodhya Cantt railway station – three years after Faizabad district was named as Ayodhya.

There have been demands from BJP leaders to change the name of Aligarh as Harigarh, Agra as Agravan and Azamgarh as Aryamgarh.