Bengaluru: Accusing the BJP and Sangh Parivar of 'double standards', CM Siddaramaiah claimed that Tipu Sultan was a secular king and a real patriot who wanted to drive away the British from Indian soil. The state government will celebrate Tipu Jayanti on a big scale next year, he said while speaking after inaugurating Tipu Sultan's birth anniversary celebrations here on Thursday.
The CM said BJP was making a lot of noise against the celebrations for political reasons. He referred to BJP President B.S. Yeddyurappa’s declaration that he would ban Tipu Jayanti in 24 hours if his party came to power and reminded Yeddyurappa of what he said near the grave of Tipu in Srirangapatna wearing the cap and holding the sword in 2012. This exposes the double standards of saffron party leaders who can stoop to any level to divide society on caste lines.
“My government will not be bogged down by such threats. Another former BJP CM Jagadish Shettar has written the foreword for a book, 'A Crusader For Change,' brought out by the government in connection with 150th anniversary of India's independence struggle describing Tipu Sultan as a great ruler. Is it not hypocrisy", he wondered.
Dismissing BJP's allegations that Tipu was anti-Hindu, he said Tipu respected all religions and had wise people as his adviser like Diwan Poornaiah. He made liberal donations to Hindu temples including Sharadadevi temple in Srigeri and Nanjundeshwara in Nanjangud.
Unfortunately, BJP leaders were relying on distorted history books written by British historians. Tipu would have won the third and fourth Anglo-Mysore War had Marathas and Nizam supported him. But, those within Tipu's army helped Britishers conquer Srirangapatna. Sri Nidumamidi Veerabhadra Chennamalla Swamy spoke. T. Gururaj from Mysuru delivered a special lecture on Tipu.
