If Kerala can change to Keralam, why not West Bengal to Bangla, asks Didi

Kolkata: The "BJP-CPM alliance" wasn't "unwritten" anymore, CM Mamata Banerjee said on Tuesday, reacting sharply to the Centre overlooking Bengal's name change proposal while hastening to change Kerala to Keralam. "One day, you (BJP) will not be in office. We will get the name changed," she said.

Reacting to the Union cabinet's Kerala name change, Banerjee said: "I would like to congratulate the brothers and sisters of Kerala on the decision to rename the state as Keralam. The names of several states are changed once such proposals are endorsed by the respective state govts. However, the same was not the case with West Bengal. When our students go for exams or interviews, they are called at the end since the name of the state begins with ‘W', which comes at the end alphabetically. I, too, face the same problem. I get the chance to speak at the end as I am the chief minister of West Bengal."




The decision to rename West Bengal as Bangla was based on the culture of the state, she said. "We passed resolutions twice in the legislative assembly. After we were told that the name of the state should be the same in Hindi, Bengali and English, we passed a resolution again to rename the state as Bangla in all three languages."

Banerjee added: "Whenever I met PM Narendra Modi and HM Amit Shah, I raised this issue. But nothing happened. I think they are not approving it because they are anti-Bengali. They disrespect the icons and visionaries of Bengal. They only use ‘Bangla' during polls to derive electoral benefits."

Taking a jibe, the CM said: "Kerala was renamed since there is an alliance growing between the BJP and CPM. The alliance is not unwritten any more after today. Why will Bengal always face deprivation?"

Bengal BJP neta and Union MoS Sukanta Majumdar said: "The objective of the CM is different, She wants to erase the history of Bengal. The proposal of the Government of West Bengal is under consideration. But as long as the name ‘West Bengal' remains, the memory of undivided Bengal will remain, the history of why West Bengal was separated will also remain."

The Centre allowed Calcutta to be renamed as Kolkata in 2001. After this, the renaming of the state found resonance since there is no East Bengal. After taking office in 2011, Banerjee first mooted a proposal that West Bengal should be renamed ‘Pashchim Banga'. The CPM and Congress, then in opposition, backed it, but the Centre turned it down.

On Aug 29, 2016, three names were proposed by the Bengal assembly: Bangla in Bengali, Bengal in English and Bangal in Hindi. Unfortunately, it was once again turned down by the Centre on the grounds that a state cannot have three names.

On July 26, 2018, a single name was proposed. It was resolved in the Bengal assembly that the name should be ‘Bangla'. But this, too, was turned down as it sounded like Bangladesh.

Trinamool spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said: "CM Mamata Banerjee appealed before the Centre to change the name of West Bengal to Bangla, following recommendations from historians and academics to intellectuals. In national meets, representatives from Bengal can speak at the very last since our state's name starts with W. If the name starts with B, we can present our demands in such meets at a much earlier stage and thus can capture the attention of those in charge. The BJP is agreeing to the demands of the CPM-run govt in Kerala but not in our case. I wonder if there is any fresh setting between the two parties. Here too, CPM voters cast their votes to BJP."