Karnataka Water Resources Minister D.K. Shivakumar dared the state unit of the BJP to bring an ordinance from the Centre banning the celebration of Tipu Jayanti if the saffron party is opposed to it. He was speaking after inaugurating the state-sponsored celebrations of the birth anniversary of the18th century ruler of Mysore at Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru on Saturday.
While the day began with the BJP leaders staging protests across all taluk centres and courting arrest, the official official event at Vidhana Soudha was delayed by an hour due to poor attendance. Despite a long list of invitees, only a handful of legislators and ministers turned up. Kannada and Culture Minister Jayamala, Haj and Wakf minister Zameer Ahmed Khan, MLAs N.A. Haris, Roshan Baig and MLC Rizwan Arshad were present at the event. All the BJP legislators were asked to boycott the celebration.
"We are not celebrating Tipu Jayanti to please anyone. Politics should follow dharma, but there should be no politics in religion (dharma). Tipu is not an asset of this state alone but of the country. Can we get more votes by celebrating a jayanti? Birth is accidental and death is certain. What one does between these two events is important. People create history and we remember and honour them, " said Shivakumar.
As Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara skipped the event citing health reasons and foreign tour respectively, Shivakumar ended up inaugurating the celebrations at the banquet hall.
Kumaraswamy, who is said to be camping in a resort near Mysuru sent his greetings on the occasion. "Tipu Sultan's progressive measures in administration and his quest for innovation are commendable," said Kumaraswamy.
Even as the BJP taunted former chief minister Siddaramaiah saying he had lost the assembly elections in Mysuru because he introduced Tipu Jayanti in 2015, rumour mills went abuzz with stories of Kumaraswamy choosing to skip the event for the fear of losing power. The chief minister, however, was quick to clarify saying he is opposed to such superstitious beliefs.
"I am taking rest on doctor's advice and hence unable to attend the programme. There is no need to look for special meaning to it,” he said in a statement, adding, he does not fear losing power.
Meanwhile, the BJP stepped up it's protests despite the prohibitory orders imposed in nine sensitive districts. BJP MLAs Appachu Ranjan and K.G. Bopaiah from Kodagu, MLA C.T. Ravi from Chikkamagaluru and hundreds of party workers from across the state registered their protest and courted arrest.
The event was celebrated peacefully, but not before exposing the fault lines within the JD(S)-Congress coalition government and the hypocrisy of the BJP. While the JD(S) chose to downplay the celebration as one among the many jayantis, the Congress party remained divided over the issue.
BJP embarrassed
A major embarrassment awaited the BJP even as the party launched a statewide protest. Old photos of its leaders B. S. Yeddyurappa, Jagadish Shettar and R. Ashok donning Tipu's attire went viral on social media.
The old photographs of BJP leaders donning Tipu Sultan's headgear and sword going viral on social media
“(Jagadish) Shettar had penned a foreword for a book on Tipu Sultan when he was the chief minister. Yeddyurappa had sported a Tipu headgear and posed for photographs when he was in KJP," mocked Siddaramaiah, who was felicitated by the Muslim community leaders at his residence.
"Protests against Tipu Jayanti are baseless and politically motivated. Tipu Sultan ruled the Mysore province and was a good administrator. He was not anti-Kannada and worked for communal harmony," said Siddaramaiah, who hit out at the BJP, accusing the party of hypocrisy.
Narasimharaja MLA Tanveer Sait expressed his displeasure over the chief minister and deputy chief minister skipping the event. "I feel it as an insult to the Muslim community. I urge the chief minister, who is relaxing in a resort, to attend the celebration at the nearest venue,” said Sait. He also urged Higher Education Minister G.T. Devegowda to institute a chair in Mysore University for conducting research on Tipu Sultan.
