Uttarakhand govt's decision to rename sports complexes sparks outrage in Bengali community
Rudrapur: The Uttarakhand govt's decision to assign collective names to major sports facilities across four cities has sparked significant criticism, especially from Bengali community in Udham Singh Nagar district.
Protesters have accused the state govt of undermining the legacy of sportspersons from their community and attempting to eras.e their contributions.
The controversy arose following a govt order, approved by the Governor, which announced new titles for various integrated sports facilities on Tuesday. According to the order, all sports infrastructure in Raipur and Dehradun, including Maharana Pratap Sports College and Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium, will now be collectively known as 'Silver Jubilee Sports Complex.'
Similarly, facilities in Gaulapar, Haldwani, will be named Manaskhand Sports Complex, those in Haridwar will be named Yogasthal Sports Complex, and all sports infrastructure in Rudrapur, including
Manoj Sarkar Stadium
, will be grouped under Shivalik Sports Complex.
However, the decision has not been well received by residents in Bengali-dominated areas of Rudrapur, Dineshpur, Shaktifarm, Sitarganj, and Gadarpur. Protests erupted in Rudrapur, where members of the Bengali community burned effigies of the govt, accusing it of cultural discrimination.
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Parimal Roy, a resident, said, "The stadium in Rudrapur was named after Manoj Kumar Sarkar in 2021 to honour his contributions as a Paralympic gold medalist and Arjuna Awardee. Changing the identity of the complex undermines not just him but the entire Bengali community."
Subrata Kumar Biswas echoed similar sentiments and said, "This is yet another example of how the BJP govt continues to marginalise Bengalis in Uttarakhand.
Manoj Sarkar is a symbol of pride for us, and this move feels like a deliberate insult."
Minati Das from Shaktifarm said, "Although the govt hasn't officially erased the name, the decision to rename the entire complex diminishes Manoj's legacy in the public eye."
Ratan Chakraborty of Sitarganj said, "If this isn't a name change, why didn't they just retain the new complex name as Manoj Sarkar Sports Complex? Why was it necessary to assign a new identity?"
In response to the backlash, sports minister Rekha Arya clarified the govt's stand. "I want to make it clear that no existing names are being changed. The name of Manoj Sarkar Stadium will remain as it is. We have simply grouped multiple facilities under a single complex name to streamline infrastructure for future events," she said.
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