Lucknow, Feb 8 (IANS): The demand to rename Lucknow as Lakshmanpuri has been revived with BJP MP Sangam Lal Gupta raising it.

Sangam Lal Gupta has written letters to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to rename Lucknow to either 'Lakhanpur' or 'Lakshmanpuri.'

In May 2022, Yogi Adityanath's tweet that referred to Lucknow as the city of Lakshman to welcome Prime Minister Narendra Modi had gained much traction.

"Seshavatar bhagwan Sri Lakshmanji ki pawan nagri Lucknow mein aapka hardik swagat va abhinandan (warm welcome on your arrival in Lucknow, the land of lord Lakshman)," Yogi had tweeted then.

The BJP MP has said in his letter, "As per ancient belief, Lord Ram had gifted Lucknow to Lakshman ji and had since been named after him as 'Lakhanpur' or 'Lakshmanpur' but in 18th century, the then nawab Asaf-ud-Daula renamed it as Lucknow and that is how it is known since. Now that the country has entered Amrit Kaal, this symbol of slavery needs to be done away with."

Meanwhile, a large, bronze statue of Lakshman, the younger brother of Lord Ram, was placed outside Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport though it is yet to be formally unveiled.

The bronze statue, designed by Statue of Unity fame sculptor Ram Sutar, has been installed at a roundabout just outside the park in its surroundings. The installation has happened days before the Global Investors' Summit scheduled in Lucknow from February 10 to 12 and the G20 summit meetings scheduled from February 13 to 15.