The statement said the term ‘durbar’ refers to courts and assemblies of Indian rulers and the British and lost relevance after India became a republic or ‘Ganatantra’. The concept of ‘Ganatantra’ has been deeply rooted in Indian society since ancient times, the statement added, making Ganatantra Mandap an apt name for the venue.

While Ashok Hall was originally a ballroom, the word ‘Ashok’ connotes someone who is “free from all sufferings” or is “bereft of any sorrow”, the statement said. It also pointed out that Ashok refers to Emperor Ashok, a symbol of unity and peaceful co-existence.

The national emblem of the Republic of India is the lion capital of Ashok from Sarnath and the word also refers to the Ashok tree which has deep significance in Indian religious traditions as well as arts and culture, the statement added.

“Renaming ‘Ashoka Hall’ as ‘Ashok Mandap’ brings uniformity in language and removes the traces of anglicisation while upholding the key values associated with the word ‘Ashok’,” it said.

In January last year, a day before the historic Mughal Gardens was to open to the public for the season, the Rashtrapati Bhavan announced that it was giving it “a common name” of ‘Amrit Udyan’. Announcing that the gardens can be visited by the general public from January 31 to March 26, Deputy Press Secretary to the President Navika Gupta said, “On the occasion of the celebration of 75 years of Independence as Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, the President of India has given a common name to the Rashtrapati Bhavan gardens as Amrit Udyan.”

Spread over 15 acres, the grounds drew their name from being laid out in the style of gardens built by the Mughals in Jammu and Kashmir, as well as around the Taj Mahal. As per the Rashtrapati Bhavan website, which describes the gardens as “the soul of the Presidential Palace”, miniature paintings of India and Persia were also an inspiration for them.

BJP leaders had welcomed the decision as “historic”, with several saying it showed that India was coming out of “slave mentality”.

In 2022, the pathway from Rashtrapati Bhavan to India Gate, which was earlier known as Rajpath, was renamed Kartavya Path. On the occasion, the Prime Minister’s Office had said: “It symbolises a shift from erstwhile Rajpath being an icon of power to Kartavya Path being an example of public ownership and empowerment.” These are “steps… in line with the Prime Minister’s second ‘Panch Pran’ for New India in Amrit Kaal: ‘remove any trace of colonial mindset’,” the statement said.