Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati on Sunday said if voted to power in Uttar Pradesh, her party would rename Bhadohi as Sant Ravidas Nagar.

In a statement issued here, the BSP chief said, "As soon as the BSP comes to power (in Uttar Pradesh), it will rename Bhadohi as Sant Ravidas Nagar. The previous Samajwadi Party government had changed its name due to its casteist mentality."

Mayawati accused the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party of never honouring saint-poet Ravidas during their tenures and indulging in "theatrics" now by visiting temples.

Listing the work done by the Bahujan Samaj Party to keep the memory of Ravidas alive, Mayawati said, "Sant Ravidas Park and Ghat were made in Varanasi, his place of birth, his statue was installed in Varanasi and the Ravidas Samman Puraskar instituted. The Santguru Ravidas Rajkiya Mahavidyalay was established in Faizabad.

Apart from this, Sant Ravidas Polytechnic was established in Chandauli. A bridge on river Ganga was named after the saint. Assistance was given for Sant Ravidas Dharmshala in Budaun."

The assertion of the former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh to rename Bhadohi as Sant Ravidas Nagar came close on the heels of a proposal to change the name of Basti, a district located in the eastern parts of the state, after Maharishi Vashishth.

The Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh has changed the name of Allahabad to Prayagraj and that of Faizabad to Ayodhya. It has also renamed the Mughalsarai railway station after Deen Dayal Upadhyay.

Meanwhile, hitting out at the Congress and the BJP, Mayawati said these parties were indulging in "theatrics" now by visiting temples.
The BSP chief’s remarks came on a day when Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was in Varanasi to offer prayers to Sant Ravidas on the occasion of his birth anniversary.

"The Congress, the BJP and other parties did not give any respect or honour to Sant Ravidas during their tenures. But after being out of power, they are indulging in various theatrics to realise their vested interests by visiting temples and other places’’ Mayawati said in a tweet in Hindi.

In another tweet, she said, "The BSP, on the other hand, has been the only party which, during its government, gave respect to him at various levels, which the opposition parties are trying to put an end to. This is highly condemnable." Ravidas Jayanti, the birth anniversary of Ravidas, was celebrated across the country on Sunday. Ravidas, a 14th-century saint, was the founder of the Bhakti movement in north India. Lakhs of people converge at Shri Guru Ravidas Janmasthan Mandir in Varanasi to celebrate his birth anniversary on this day every year.