After Mustafabad MLA Mohan Singh Bisht, BJP MLA from Najafgarh, Neelam Pahalwan, proposed in the Delhi Assembly renaming her constituency Najafgarh to "Nahargarh, citing historical references to Raja Nahar Singh’s role in the 1857 revolt and his efforts to bring the region under Delhi’s territory. BJP MLA Anil Sharma also demanded to rename the Mohammadpur village in his RK Puram constituency of Delhi as ‘Madhavpuram’.
She claimed that Mughal ruler Aurangzeb had renamed Nahargarh as Najafgarh and demanded that its original name be restored. Pahalwan won the Delhi elections by defeating AAP candidate Tarun Kumar by a margin of over 29,000 votes.
“You know that my constituency is from the rural areas of Delhi, and it borders three areas of Haryana. When the Mughal ruler, Emperor Shah Alam II, took control of Najafgarh, there was a lot of oppression in the region,” she said.
"During the 1857 revolt, Raja Nahar Singh fought and include d Najafgarh in Delhi's territory. Despite several efforts, including those by then MP Parvesh Sahib SinghVerma, we tried to rename Najafgarh to 'Nahargarh'," Pahalwan said in the assembly during special mention under Rule 280.
“This change is important because the people of Najafgarh have suffered great oppression, and it holds a lot of significance for the people there. The kings of the region fought for their existence,” she added.
The push for renaming areas appears to be gaining traction among the BJP leaders in Delhi.
Following Pahalwan's proposal, the BJP also sought a name change for a village under the RK Puram assembly constituency, saying Mohammadpur should be renamed as Madhavpuram.
He stated that Mohammadpur should be renamed as Madhavpuram and announced that he would put forward this proposal in the Delhi Assembly. “The corporation had passed a proposal to change the name of Madhavpuram village long ago. That proposal has been pending in the Assembly for a long time. Till now there was a government of the Aam Aadmi Party, they must have kept it buried somewhere. Now, I will get time for this issue tomorrow as I get time from the respected speaker. I will raise this issue,” Sharma said
When asked about the reason behind the renaming of the village, he responded, “People demand that this village should be named Madhavpuram village instead of Mohammadpur. This government of Delhi is formed. People's government is in the same manner as the demand of the people. Work will be done.” The BJP MLA stated that if given the opportunity by the Speaker, he will formally present the proposal at the earliest.
Delhi BJP said in a post on X, "Out of the darkness of slavery into the light. BJP MLA Neelam Pehalwan proposed in the assembly that the name of Najafgarh should be changed to Nahargarh. On the other hand, BJP MLA Anil Sharma raised the demand to change the name of Mohammadpur village to Madhavpuram." Some residents of Mohammadpur welcomed the proposal to change the name of the village to Madhavpuram.
Bhagat Singh Tokas, a former ward councillor, said, "In 2021, we passed a proposal to change the name of our village to Madhavpuram in the MCD, and sent the same to the AAP government but no action was taken on the proposal. We have been demanding this for generations. The present name of the village reminds us of slavery." "This is a Jat-dominated village where people are mostly Hindus. We do not have a Muslim population in the village. So, we want its name to be changed to Madhavpuram," a resident of the village said.
After securing victory in the Mustafabad constituency, senior BJP leader Mohan Singh Bisht declared that he would rename Mustafabad as either "Shiv Puri" or "Shiv Vihar" once he officially took office.
"I will change the name of the area from Mustafabad to Shiv Puri or Shiv Vihar. I have stated this before. I fail to understand why political parties are insistent on retaining the name Mustafabad. Why can't an area predominantly inhabited by Hindus be named Shiv Puri or Shiv Vihar? People are troubled by the name 'Mustafa,' and it should be changed. I will make sure it happens," Bisht said
Mustafabad, a Muslim-majority constituency in North-East Delhi, was among the worst-affected areas during the 2020 communal riots. Bisht, a four-time BJP MLA from Karawal Nagar, was fielded from Mustafabad in the recent elections, replacing Kapil Mishra. He won by a massive margin of over 17,500 votes, defeating AAP candidate Adeel Ahmad. His victory has further fuelled the BJP's push to rename places across Delhi.
