The Akbar Road sign was damaged, and one of the men was heard saying the roads should be renamed “Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Marg.” The group with him shouted slogans and warned they would remove the signboards if the names weren’t changed.
A video has gone viral on the social media where a few young men could be seen damaging signboards of roads named after Mughal emperors Babar, Humayun and Akbar. The youths could be seen spraying black paint on the names of the emperors and peeing on the signboards. One of the men, identified as Daksh Chaudhary, was heard demanding that these roads be renamed. He went on to paste a poster reading ‘Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Marg’ on the defaced Akbar Road signboard.
Looking into the camera, Chaudhary chanted, “Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj ki jai. Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj ki jai.” The youths purportedly took the step after watching the recently released Bollywood movie ‘Chhaava’ based on the life of Maratha ruler Shivaji Maharaj.
The men also said that, “Ye desh Maharana Pratap, Maharaja Surajmal ki den hai. Aise gaddaron ki is desh mein koi zarurat nahi hai. Inka naam-o-nishan mita denge. (This country is the land of Maharana Pratap, Maharaja Surajmal. There is no need for such traitors in this country. We will erase their names and signs from this nation).
Watch the viral video here:
Chhaava Movie: देख दिल्ली में अकबर-हुमायूं और बाबर रोड पर कुछ युवकों ने पोती कालिख, शिवाजी के पोस्टर चिपका दी धमकी।#videoviral pic.twitter.com/jaye7hlFiX
— Monu Kumar Jha (@MonuKumarJ20785) February 22, 2025
After putting up posters of Shivaji on the Akbar Road sign, the vandals poured milk on it. The youths with Chaudhary also shouted slogans and warned they would remove the signboards if the road names weren’t changed.
The Delhi police took action after the vandalism and sent teams to the location. Civic officials also cleaned the damaged signboards. The police started looking at CCTV footage to investigate and increased monitoring to stop any more damage .
The incident has sparked a lot of debate and tension, with many people expressing anger over the defacement of historical landmarks. The authorities are working to ensure that such acts of vandalism are prevented in the future.
