NEW DELHI/AJMER – The decades-old Government Moiniya Islamia School in Ajmer, Rajasthan, has found itself at the centre of a fresh political and communal storm after a BJP councillor demanded its name be changed to ‘Shri Jyotiba Phule School’.
The school, which dates back to the pre-independence era and has long served the Urdu-speaking Muslim population of Ajmer, is now facing a threat to its identity. The demand to rename it came during a School Development and Management Committee (SDMC) meeting where Balesh Mohil and Bharti Srivastava, a BJP councillor from Ward 16, jointly proposed the new name.
The school principal, rather than refusing the demand, reportedly forwarded the proposal to the Ajmer District Education Officer (DEO) and Director of Secondary Education in Bikaner. The move sparked immediate outrage across the city, particularly among Muslims and opposition leaders.
“This is not just about a name. It’s a deliberate attempt to erase the identity and history of Muslims in Rajasthan,” said SM Akbar, General Secretary of the Minority Department of the Rajasthan Congress Committee.
Speaking strongly against the proposal, Akbar added, “The name ‘Moiniya Islamia’ is a symbol of our culture and heritage. It was established even before India’s independence. Any such attempt to tamper with this legacy is politically motivated and unacceptable.”
He further warned the district administration of serious consequences. “If the name is changed under pressure, we will challenge it in court. The responsibility will lie with the DEO and the district administration,” he said.
Akbar suggested that instead of renaming existing institutions, new schools should be constructed to honour social reformers like Jyotiba Phule. “We have utmost respect for Shri Jyotiba Phule. If the BJP really wants to honour him, they should build a new school in his name rather than trying to erase the name of an existing Urdu school.”
The controversy comes against the backdrop of a wider campaign by the Bhajan Lal Sharma-led BJP government to replace names associated with Muslim culture and language with Hindu-centric ones. Several Urdu-medium institutions across Rajasthan have reportedly been targeted, with efforts being made to shift them into Hindi-medium schools and rename them accordingly.
This story was originally published in clarionindia.net. Read the full story here.
