Erasure of Muslim legacy: BJP-led West Bengal govt renames Kolkata’s Suhrawardy Avenue
Kolkata
: The BJP-led government in West Bengal has renamed one of Kolkata’s prominent roads, removing the name of a renowned Muslim scholar and triggering fresh debate over the erasure of Muslim historical figures from India’s public spaces.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation renamed Suhrawardy Avenue as Gopal Mukherjee Road. The move was defended by BJP leader and Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, who claimed the avenue had been named after Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy, the last Prime Minister of undivided Bengal and a former Prime Minister of Pakistan, and described the renaming as a correction of a “historical wrong”.
However, historians, opposition leaders and social media users refuted the claim, clarifying that the avenue was named after Hassan Shahid Suhrawardy, a distinguished educationist, art historian and former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Calcutta. While the two belonged to the same prominent Bengali family, they were separate historical figures with distinct legacies.
Congress leader Pawan Khera and the CPI(M) criticized the BJP government for confusing the two personalities, calling it a reflection of historical ignorance and a failure to verify basic facts before altering a major public landmark.
Analysts noted that the misconception linking the avenue to Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy has long circulated within Hindutva circles and can be traced to narratives promoted by RSS-affiliated platforms.
The controversy has also renewed scrutiny of Gopal Mukherjee, after whom the road has been renamed. Historical accounts describe Mukherjee as a prominent Hindu leader during the 1946 communal violence in Bengal who organized armed Hindu groups and advocated retaliatory attacks, making him a highly contentious figure in the region’s history.
