Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The proposal for changing the name of Barkatullah University to Bagdevi Bhojpal Vishwavidyalaya has sparked controversy.
The former students of the university have begun to protest against the proposal to change its name.
A former minister Raj Kumar Patel said instead of changing the name of the university, the government should to manage it.
According to him, several people fought for establishing the university, and Barkatullah was one of the freedom fighters, so his name should not be changed.
In the same way, legislator Arif Masood opposed the proposal for changing the name of the university.
Masood said although Barkatullah had been abroad, he fought for the country's freedom.
According to Masood, the Governor is the head of the university, and he sought time to meet the Governor.
He said he would protest against the proposal for changing the name of the university at all every level.
The district president of Jamiat Ulama Hafiz Ismail Beg said the decision to change the name of the university was an insult to a freedom fighter.
It is not the matter of changing the name of a university, it is an effort to remove the name of a freedom fighter, he said.
BJP leaders welcome proposal
The BJP leaders welcomed the proposal to change the name of the university. BJP's state vice president Surendra Sharma welcomed the proposal of the university executive council. Those who are associated with the RSS also welcomed the proposal.
Who was Barkatullah
Mohamed Barakatullah Bhopali (1854 1927) was a prominent Indian anti-British revolutionary and intellectual from Bhopal who campaigned for India's independence from abroad. He served as the first Prime Minister of the Provisional Government of India, a government-in-exile established in Afghanistan in 1915.
He also travelled to many countries advocating for Indian independence and was especially active in Japan.
