Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) minister Nitesh Rane on Sunday visited Thane’s Mumbra suburb to participate in the Kanwar Yatra. Following his visit, Rane described the area as the “land of Mahadev” and reiterated his demand to rename Mumbra as Mumbra Devi.
Rane, who was seen wearing an orange outfit, said he attended the event on behalf of Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to convey a message to the people of Mumbra. “The Hindu population here should increase, and more and more Hindus should settle in our Mumbra Devi,” he said.
Rane reiterates renaming demand
Amid the ongoing controversy over the proposed renaming of Mumbra to Mumbra Devi, Rane said that people should now refer to the area as Mumbra Devi instead of Mumbra.
“This is our Mumbra Devi, and it is part of our Hindu Rashtra. This country is a Hindu Rashtra; it is not anyone's father's Pakistan,” Rane said.
He further described the area as the land of Mahadev and assured locals that no one should have to leave the place. “This is your city, this is your India. No one should even think of driving anyone away from here or taking away the rights of our Mumbra Devi,” he added.
Rane addresses concerns over visit
Rane also referred to concerns raised over his visit, saying, “Since the news of my arrival here came out last night, many people felt that I should not come to Mumbra. But they may have forgotten that this is not Mumbra, it is Mumbra Devi.”
Maharashtra renaming debate
Rane has been pushing for the renaming of the Thane suburb since earlier this week. His remarks come after several places in Maharashtra were renamed, including Aurangabad, which was renamed Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, while Osmanabad was renamed Dharashiv.
