The Habibganj railway station in Bhopal has been renamed after Gond queen Rani Kamalapati, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced on Saturday while thanking Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the decision.

The Prime Minister is scheduled to inaugurate this renamed railway station, redeveloped with modern airport-like amenities, on November 15, during his visit to the state capital to address a tribal convention to mark 'Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas' in remembrance of tribal icon and freedom fighter Birsa Munda. The station was revamped at a cost of ₹450 crore under Public Private Partnership mode in three years.

BJP MP from Bhopal, Pragya Thakur, who wanted the station to be renamed after former prime minister late Atal Bihar Vajpayee, also welcomed the decision.

“It is a matter of pride for us that the railway station will be named after the last Hindu Gond queen of Bhopal. I am happy that our demand to change the name has been accepted by the central government,” BJP MP from Bhopal, Pragya Thakur, said.

People of Madhya Pradesh are thankful to the Prime Minister for renaming the Habibganj railway station after Rani Kamlapati, the Gond queen of Bhopal, the CM said in a statement.

He said the PM has enhanced the glory of tribals by renaming the most-modern railway station of the country after the Gond queen.

“Rani Kamlapati is the pride of the Gond community and the last Hindu queen of Bhopal. Her kingdom was usurped by Afghan commander Dost Mohammed by deceit under a conspiracy. When she saw that victory was not possible, she committed 'Jal Jauhar' to save her respect,” Chouhan stated.

"Habibganj railway station was located in a village which was named after Habibullah, grandson of Nawab Sultan Jehan Begum. After the death of his father Nasirullah Khan, Habibullah was about to become a ruler of Bhopal but Sultan Jehan Begum interfered and ensured the rule for his youngest son Hamidullah Khan in 1926. Later, Habibullah left Bhopal. He remained a bachelor and died in Pune,” Ashar Kidwai, history professor at Safia Arts College in the city, said.

“It is true that Habibullah did not do much for the city, so his name can be changed, but like Habibullah, Rani Kamlapati had also not done anything for the development of the city. It should be named after any member of the Nawab’s family or in the name of Barkatullah, a great freedom fighter from Bhopal. The Bharatiya Janata Party has tried to push the agenda of impressing the tribals and calling them Hindu by doing this,” Rizwan Uddin Ansari, a historian from Bhopal, said.

Congress MLA from Bhopal, Arif Masood, said, "Habibullah Khan gave land and also money for the construction of a small railway station in the 1920’s. Later in 1969, the state government constructed it as a second railway station in the city after Bhopal railway station in the name of Habibullah only. They are unnecessarily changing the name to end the identity of Nawab’s family, who developed it beautifully."

Image courtesy: PTI