New Delhi [India], May 30 : Communist Party of India (CPI) Rajya Sabha MP P Sandosh Kumar has written to Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu, demanding that the upcoming Bihta Airport in Bihar be named after legendary peasant leader Swami Sahajanand Saraswati.
In his letter, Kumar wrote, "I write to demand that the Ministry of Civil Aviation to name the upcoming Bihta Airport in Bihar after Swami Sahajanand Saraswati, one of the tallest leaders of the peasant movement and the first President of the All India Kisan Sabha."
"Swami Sahajanand Saraswati was not only a spiritual scholar but also an uncompromising champion of the oppressed peasantry. His leadership in Bihar during the colonial era fundamentally altered the landscape of agrarian politics. He led massive struggles against the exploitative zamindari system and built powerful farmer mobilisations that laid the foundation of the modern Kisan movement in India," Kumar wrote.
"As a staunch advocate of socialism and a lifelong fighter for justice, his political convictions brought him close to the Communist movement, and he remains a towering figure in India's progressive and agrarian legacy," he added.
The Kerala MP further said that naming the airport after Swami Sahajanand would "not merely be symbolic--it would be historically and morally befitting. It would honour the legacy of a great son of Bihar who dedicated his life to the upliftment of peasants and rural poor and whose vision still resonates with lakhs of kisans across the country."
"At a time when the rural and agrarian question is once again at the centre of national discourse, recognising such a figure is not just timely, but necessary. We hope this demand will be met with the seriousness it deserves and that the Ministry will take the appropriate steps to ensure that Swami Sahajanand Saraswati's name and legacy are given the recognition they rightfully deserve," he added.
On Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the new terminal building of Patna Airport and laid the foundation stone for a new civil enclave at Bihta Airport on the city's outskirts.