On Tuesday, the Karnataka CM BS Yediyurappa inaugurated the Veer Savarkar flyover in Yelahanka, Bengaluru. The 400-metre long flyover with 4 lanes was due for a name change for a long while, but the name has so far faced a protest from many across the city.
Veer Savarkar is hailed as one of India's freedom fighters, a Hindutva ideologue and a patriot. However, the opposition parties and many in the city don't see him as such.
Yelahanka's flyover changes names to Veer Savarkar
The name change of the flyover in Yelahanka, Bengaluru has been one that's been on the cards for a long time. The BBMP Councillors have been attempting to get the name changed to Veer Savarkar before September 10th, as it has been on their agenda.
The 4-lane flyover was built at a cost of Rs 34 crore, near the Yelahanka Mother Dairy Circle. The 400-metre flyover will not be called the 'Veer Savarkar' flyover inaugurated by Karnataka CM Yediyurappa on Tuesday. The flyover was inaugurated in the presence of Deputy CM Ashwathnarayan, Home minister Basavaraj Bommai, Tourism minister CT Ravi and others.
For a long time now, citizens and the opposition have been opposed to the idea of the name Veer Savarkar. The Hindutva ideologue has not been well-received by Congress, JDS and others. Due to the Vinayak Damodar Savarkar's link to Mahatma Gandhi's assassination and what he stood for.
After Janata Dal Secular threatened to protest the naming of the flyover as Veer Savarkar, the Youth Wing leader Praveen Kumar was detained by the police. The party said in its tweet, "The government has arrested President Praveen Kumar for fear of protests and the state government is taking a dictatorial stand over the naming of Maharashtra's Savarkar for the Yelahanka overpass. This is a rebuke of the anti-people government."
Even the public has hinted towards the backlash over the naming of the flyover.
