It might have only come about in C90 or C99-- I honestly don't know the history, but it has been there for a while. I admit that it is a pattern found more in C++ than C codebases, but I'm personally very much in favor of it as a good practice. Helps express the intent, and prevents accidental changes in a variety of situations.

That said, ultimately this your project and so if you prefer it removed, just let me know and I can nuke it. I'll leave unless I hear otherwise.