Dnyaneshwar or Gagarin, debate on to name Lalbaug flyover

While the Russian Cultural Centre wants the Lalbaug flyover to be named after Yuri Gagarin, the astronaut who was the first man in space, the Shiv Sena has demanded that the flyover be called Sant Dnyaneshwar. The Sena also threatened repercussions if any government agencies tried to change the name of the bridge. Interestingly, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) has supported the Shiv Sena on this issue.

While the flyover was opened to traffic recently, the naming ceremony has yet to be conducted.

The Russian Cultural Centre has proposed the name of astronaut Yuri Gagarin, 50 years after he completed the first journey into space on April 12. The move would strengthen Indo-Russian ties, it claimed. Alexy Novikov, consul general of Russia had already met chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and forwarded the request about the naming of the bridge.

Shiv Sena local vibhag pramukh Ajay Chaudhary objected to the demand. “The earlier bridge was named after Sant Dnyaneshwar, and so should the new flyover since it was constructed at the same place. Sant Dnyaneshwar was the first Marathi saint and founder of the Warkari community,” he said. “If the civic administration or the MMRDA tries to change the name, the Shiv Sena will not be silent,” he warned.

Mangesh Sangale, MLA and MNS group leader in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) also objected to Yuri Gagarin’s name for the bridge. “There is no issue of change in the name. The bridge should be known as Sant Dnyaneshwar’s name,” he said.