Amid major protests by the BJP and Sangh Parivar organisations, the ruling Congress Government celebrated Tipu Sultan Jayanti in Karnataka on Friday. Though the official programme was boycotted by the BJP and other rightwing parties, the celebrations went on without any untoward incidents barring minor incidents across the State.
The celebration of Tipu Sultan’s birth anniversary, an 18th century ruler of Mysore kingdom ahead of ensuing polls in the State has become a major row between the ruling Congress and the major Opposition BJP.
last year when the Siddaramaiah Government decided to celebrate Tipu’s birth anniversary as a State function it was vehemently opposed by the BJP and marred with violence which saw the brutal death of two people in Kodagu district. This year too, the BJP opposed the celebration by saying Tipu was a tyrant monarch for being biased against Hindus. But Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his Government say that Tipu Sulatan was a patriot and fought against the British. This is the third year in a row the ruling Government celebrated Tipu Jaynthi amidst protests. A thick blanket of security was put in place across the entire State to see that the celebrations take place peacefully. As many as over 54,000 police personnel and platoons of the Karnataka State Reserve Police, bolstered by the Rapid Action Force, kept a hawk-eyed vigil as functions were held at the district headquarters, where State Ministers and others hailed the legacy of Tipu.
On Tuesday Karnataka High Court had refused to put on stay Tipu Sultan Jayanti celebrations. BJP and other Hindu outfits have opposed Tipu Jayanti celebrations, by calling him “religious bigot”, “fanatic” and “anti-Kannada”. However, Siddaramaiah had also defended the State Government’s decision to celebrate the birth anniversary of the Mysore ruler by saying he was the first ruler to fight against the British and a great warrior to protect the kingdom.
There were reports of stones being hurled at a State transport bus and over 100 people, including local BJP MlA Appachu Ranjan, being detained in Kodagu district, where widespread protests and violence had marred the Tipu Jayanti celebrations two years ago, when a local VHP leader died and several others, including policemen, were injured. Kodagu district observed a shutdown in response to a bandh called by the BJP and certain rightwing outfits. Prohibitory orders are in place in the district till Saturday morning.
Prohibitory orders had also been clamped at certain places in Belagavi and Chitradurga districts. In Mangaluru, BJP district minority morcha president Franklin Monteiro, who tried to break the security cordon and barge into the premises where the celebrations were organised, was placed under arrest.
Even as BJP MlAs and MPs stayed away from the event, with some even writing to the respective district administrations not to mention their names in the invitations for it, party MlA from Vijayanagara constituency in Ballari district Anand Singh joined the celebrations.