West Bengal to be renamed as 'Paschim Banga': State BJP Chief Samik Bhattacharya

Kolkata: West Bengal will be renamed as 'Paschim Banga', West Bengal BJP president Samik Bhattacharya said on Wednesday.

Bhattacharya said this is BJP's long-pending demand, adding that the proposal will first be passed in the assembly and then sent to the Centre for approval. He claimed that 'Paschim Banga' would preserve the state's historical identity.

Bhattacharya said that names such as 'Paschim Bangla', 'Bangla' and 'Banga' would not be considered. "Paschim Banga will be the name."


The previous Trinamool Congress government had proposed changing the state's name to 'Bangla'. Former chief minister Mamata Banerjee had said that the existing name - West Bengal - was lower in alphabetical listings and, hence, she gets to speak last in national meetings. However, the Centre didn't approve the proposal. Recently, Kerala was renamed as 'Keralam'.