Delhi's Identity Crisis: Historians Challenge the Proposal to Rename India's Capital to Indraprastha

New Delhi:

How would Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose's iconic 'Dilli Chalo' slogan retain its significance if we eliminate the very name 'Dilli'? This poignant question from historian Swapna Liddle addresses the core of the controversy surrounding the recent proposal to rename India's capital to 'Indraprastha,' as she contends that such a change risks obliterating the city's "long and shared past."

The historian's commentary follows Delhi BJP MP Praveen Khandelwal's proposal to officially rename the capital as Indraprastha. In his letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Khandelwal connected the city to the Pandavas' capital from the Mahabharata epic.

Khandelwal's proposal extends beyond just renaming the city - he suggests rebranding the Old Delhi Railway Station and the international airport as Indraprastha and erecting impressive statues of the Pandavas to "revive India's history and cultural faith."

"Communal Agenda"

Prominent historian S Irfan Habib dismisses the proposal to rename Delhi, describing it as "insincere and factually incorrect" and warning that it should not be taken seriously since it advances a "communal agenda."

Challenging those advocating for the name change, he asks them to clarify, "Which Delhi are you talking about?"

He highlights the city's extensive and multilayered history and its continuous expansion. He observes that even the historic district of Shahjahanabad has grown far beyond its original boundaries. "There is so much—from Mehrauli to Kotla," he tells NDTV, emphasizing how impossible it is to reduce the modern metropolis to a single ancient location.

The historian strongly criticizes the proposal for Pandava statues, questioning, "What statues will you set up for the Pandavas? Who has seen them?" He also warns against confusing "fact and folklore," arguing that attempting to transform myth into history trivializes the past.

"The past should remain sacrosanct—history and myth are distinct," he maintains. "History comes with facts, while myth is memory. Blurring this distinction undermines both."

Citing previous renaming efforts as evidence of the futility of such demands, he questions, "Connaught Place was renamed Rajiv Chowk, but who calls it that except at the metro station?"

Decoding the 'Dilli' Identity

Swapna Liddle's career-defining work is Chandni Chowk: The Mughal City of Old Delhi (2017), a foundational book that reconstructs 17th-century Shahjahanabad through archival research, maps, and oral histories, establishing her as a leading authority on Delhi's Mughal heritage.

In her interview with NDTV, Liddle suggests that prioritizing the mythological name not only elevates one ancient era above all subsequent ones but also misrepresents the city's continuous, inclusive identity.

The historian points out that the name 'Dilli' originates from the first identifiable fortified city built by the Tomars in the area around today's Qutub Minar Complex. "In time, new capitals (like Lal Kot, Siri, and Shahjahanabad) were built, but actually each of them was, even in their own time, subsumed under the name 'Dilli,'" she explains.

A More Inclusive Name

Liddle argues that the current name is "literally more inclusive" than any historical city names, having expanded to encompass all the cities constructed in the area across centuries.

Marginalizing Multi-layered History

She avoids framing the issue as Hindu versus non-Hindu heritage but emphasizes that changing the name would "erase our long and shared past." The city's history spans from Indraprastha, through the Tomars' Dhillika, the Sultanate, the Mughals (Shahjahanabad), and the colonial era, making the name Dilli a symbol of this multi-layered evolution.

Historical and Logistical Hurdles

Addressing the claim that modern Delhi is precisely the location of Mahabharata's Indraprastha, Liddle introduces historical caution. While medieval Sanskrit and later Persian texts refer to a place called Indraprastha or Indarpat in today's Central Vista area, "none of them identify it as the capital of the Pandavas of the Mahabharata," and no Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) excavation has definitively linked any site with that legendary city. Archaeological findings, such as Painted Grey Ware (PGW) at the Purana Qila site, indicate an ancient settlement but don't conclusively prove it was the sophisticated capital described in the epic.

Liddle distinguishes between the recent renaming of places like Ayodhya and Varanasi and the potential change for India's political capital. Such a change in Delhi, she warns, "would certainly have a much bigger impact," especially considering the logistical confusion and risk to the city's established global recognition as a major economic gateway.

Recent name changes in Delhi include Aurangzeb Road to Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Road (2015), Race Course Road to Lok Kalyan Marg (2016), Rajpath to Kartavya Path (2022), and Mughal Gardens to Amrit Udyan (2023).

Symbolism vs Substance in Cultural Revival

The MP's proposal also included installing statues of the Pandavas to educate youth about history. The historian critically addresses this, stating, "'Education' should not be confused with shallow symbolism like statues." She maintains that genuine education and cultural pride emerge from "the freedom to explore, question, understand, and debate the past of the city in the context of actual historical evidence."

Ultimately, Liddle suggests the city's focus should be elsewhere, questioning the priority of the renaming exercise itself. Amid pressing urban challenges, she asserts that true restoration of legacy lies in addressing "issues of urban planning, pollution control, and equitable development" rather than a symbolic name change.

The culture most Delhi residents identify with, she concludes, is that of an evolved city—"an idea and an identity, which most people irrespective of ideological persuasion take pride and joy in."