LUCKNOW: The over century-old Mughalsarai railway station has been renamed after RSS ideologue Deen Dayal Upadhyaya, with Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik giving his assent on Tuesday.
A notification for this was issued by the state government on Monday, an official spokesman said.
The state government had in June last year decided to rename Mughalsarai Junction in Chandauli district after Upadhyaya, who was found dead near the station in mysterious circumstances in 1968.
After the approval of the state cabinet, the proposal was forwarded to the Railway Ministry.
It was then sent to Raj Bhavan for the Governor’s assent, which was given on Tuesday.
Mughalsarai is also the birth place of former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri.
The notification said the station’s name has been changed to ‘Pt Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Junction’ with immediate effect.
The Centre gave its in-principle approval for renaming the station, among the busiest in the country, last year. The move drew flak from opposition parties which accused the ruling party of attempting to tamper with history.
The Aam Aadmi Party was quick to criticise the move after the station’s renaming was announced .
The station was built during colonial rule and is a major stop on the Delhi-Howrah route.