After reading my blog In Karachi: Bombay, Not Mumbai Meri Jaan, renowned literato Ajmal Kamal told me of the time when the Indian government changed the name from Bombay to Mumbai. He said the Indian government forced people to change inscriptions of the older name everywhere, including plaques and signboards. They were successful to an extent, but they couldn’t turn every stone, of course.

This gave rise to some very interesting problems. For example, what to do about the letters pouring in with addresses with the city’s old name, Bombay? A certain wiseacre, who happened to be a minister at the time, advised the government to cease the delivery of any letter which had 'Bombay' written under city name.

Almost immediately, the government announced that exactly after a certain date, no letter with the name Bombay in the delivery address will reach its intended receiver.

The date arrived, but ‘Bombay’ did not cease to be.

Eventually, letters piled up in post offices everywhere in the city to the extent that staff members were almost sitting on letters, instead of chairs.

The government was forced to revert the decision: Bombay would receive letters.

Also read: From Nehru to Jigar Muradabadi: A road renamed

It is for their own ease, perhaps, that our authorities here in Karachi have not issued such absurd instructions. You can only imagine what would go down at post offices across the metropolis if, one fine day, the authorities forced people to write new street names instead of the old ones. I should correct myself – you cannot even imagine.

One of many such rechristened streets is – or was – the Manekjee Street in Jamshed Town, Karachi. For now its name, according to the records, is Khalid Ishaque Advocate Street. You will find it in the Garden East area.

Both Manekjee and Khalid Ishaque were among scholars and nobles. Both were religious. The major contrast was that the former was a Parsi, while the latter a Muslim.