The Congress-led Karnataka government’s bid to celebrate the Tipu Sultan’s birth anniversary as an official event has ‘again’ triggered a severe political tug-of-war between the BJP –which rule the central government- and the Congress Party, with the BJP MP for Uttara Kannada and Union Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Anantkumar Hegde, directing all departments concerned with the celebration not to include his name in the any invitations or notices related to the celebration, which is strongly denounced by the BJP citing that the celebration hurts a section of the society which believes that Tipu was an anti-Hindu and anti-Kannada ruler.
The Tipu Jayanthi, as an official celebration, was first introduced in the year 2015. That year, several protests occurred across the state, particularly in Kodagu, challenging the government’s move.
It seems that the ruling party of Karnataka (the Congress Party) is trying to use the celebration as a weapon to counter the growing ‘Hindutva and Regionalist Movements’ in the state.
At this moment, it is not clear whether the plan has backfired or not. Experts say that the political parties should not play with any sensitive issues until and unless they are very sure that their actions would not trigger instability in the society.
Vignesh. S. G
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