Parliament Passes Bill to Rename Kerala as Keralam

Parliament on Wednesday cleared legislation to change the official name of Kerala to Keralam, completing the parliamentary stage of a process that began with a unanimous resolution by the Kerala Legislative Assembly in 2024.

The Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026 was passed by the Rajya Sabha by voice vote a day after the Lok Sabha approved it amid Opposition protests and disruptions. The legislation seeks to amend the First Schedule of the Constitution to replace the name “Kerala” with “Keralam.”

The Bill was introduced in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday evening by Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai on behalf of Home Minister Amit Shah, who was not present in the House.

The legislation marks the latest step in a long-running demand to formally use Keralam, the Malayalam name of the state, in the Constitution and official records.

The original demand dates back to a unanimous resolution passed by the Kerala Assembly on June 24, 2024. In that resolution, the Assembly noted that the state is known as “Keralam” in Malayalam and urged the Centre to take steps under Article 3 of the Constitution to alter its name.

The constitutional process moved forward in 2026 after the Union Cabinet approved the proposal on Feb. 24. Under Article 3, a Bill seeking to alter the name of a state requires the President's recommendation and must first be referred to the concerned state legislature for its views.

President Droupadi Murmu subsequently referred the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026 to the Kerala Assembly on June 17. The state legislature unanimously approved all 10 clauses of the draft legislation on July 1, clearing the way for its introduction in Parliament.

Opposition raises other renaming demands

The Rajya Sabha discussion on Wednesday saw broad support for the proposal, although several MPs used the debate to raise demands for renaming other states, cities and railway stations.

Congress MP Jebi Mather Hisham welcomed the legislation. When she sought to raise an issue concerning the Home Minister, Leader of the House J P Nadda objected and asked the chair not to take the “political statement” on record.

Trinamool Congress MP Derek O’Brien referred to West Bengal’s longstanding proposal to change its name to Bangla, saying the matter had remained pending for eight years.

DMK MP Tiruchi Siva also backed the Bill, drawing a parallel with the earlier renaming of Madras as Tamil Nadu. “We know the value of a name,” he said, while congratulating the people of the state.

AIADMK MP M Thambidurai called for greater emphasis on cooperative federalism and respect for regional languages.

AAP MP Sanjay Singh also stressed the importance of recognising India’s linguistic and cultural diversity. Referring to the Centre-state relationship and the assistance provided to Kerala during natural disasters, Singh said: “Don’t just change the name, change your behaviour.”

IUML MP Haris Beeran highlighted Kerala’s “secular credentials”, saying that although the state was not governed by a “double engine” government, it remained a “vital part of the secular engine”.

Rashtriya Lok Morcha MP Upendra Kushwaha demanded that Bihar’s capital be renamed from Patna to Pataliputra. BJP MP Samik Bhattacharya sought the renaming of West Bengal as Pashchim Bongo and also raised the issue of changing the name of Bakhtiarpur Junction in Bihar.

Government says Keralam reflects Malayalam identity

Responding to the debate, MoS Home Nityanand Rai said the name change was significant not only for the people of the state but for the country as a whole.

“It is a matter of pride not just for the residents of Kerala, but for all Indians.”

Rai said the Kerala Assembly had sought the change because Keralam is the Malayalam name of the state.

On the demands to rename Patna and West Bengal, the minister said the government would consider such proposals if they were submitted through the established procedure.

The Rajya Sabha subsequently passed the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026 by voice vote.

What happens next?

Although both Houses of Parliament have now passed the Kerala name change Bill, the state does not immediately become “Keralam” in law merely because Parliament has approved the legislation.

The constitutional process requires the legislation to complete the remaining formalities before the change takes legal effect. Once the law receives presidential assent and is formally notified, the amendment to the First Schedule will replace “Kerala” with “Keralam” in the constitutional list of states.

The change is intended to apply to the state's official and legal identity, including references in government communications and constitutional records.

The Bill's passage follows a rare sequence of unanimous decisions in the Kerala Assembly. The 2024 resolution was unanimously adopted by the legislature, while the 2026 Presidential reference was also unanimously approved by the newly elected Assembly in July.

The broader argument behind the proposal is linguistic: while “Kerala” is the form used in the Constitution and widely used in English, “Keralam” is the name used in Malayalam. The 2024 Assembly resolution linked the demand to the linguistic reorganisation of states in 1956 and the creation of Kerala as a Malayalam-speaking state.

The Rajya Sabha's approval therefore brings the Kerala to Keralam name change to the final constitutional stage, nearly two years after the state's legislature first renewed its demand for the alteration.