Written by MK Ashoka
The ruling Congress in Karnataka and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are at loggerheads following the proposal to name the Mysuru airport after Tipu Sultan. The BJP unit is opposing the proposal with full force and the issue is likely to take a communal turn.
Minister for RDPR, IT, and BT Priyank Kharge made the proposal, and Congress MLA Prasad Abbaiah raised the issue in the winter session. Minister for Housing BZ Zameer Ahmad Khan and others supported the proposal. Sources in the Congress explain that the party wants to name the Mysuru airport after Tipu to counter the BJP, which changed the name of the Tipu Express train to Wadiyar Express.
The BJP also removed the title ‘Mysuru Tiger’ given to Tipu Sultan, from textbooks. The BJP government led by BS Yediyurappa had banned the Tipu Jayanthi celebration in the state.
Tipu Jayanthi was started in 2015 by the Congress government, under the leadership of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. Sources say that the current Siddaramaiah government is seriously contemplating naming the Mysuru airport after Tipu Sultan in this backdrop.
However, Siddaramaiah and Dy CM DK Shivakumar are tight-lipped about the issue. Sources explain that they are reconsidering the move because the BJP will use the issue to polarise Hindu votes in the state as the Lok Sabha elections are fast approaching.
BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal stirred controversy by stating that Tipu Sultan’s name should be given for a public toilet. He urged that the airport be named after the erstwhile ruler of Mysuru, Nalvadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar.
MLA Yatnal further maintained that Congress leaders talk about Tipu Sultan, who massacred lakhs of Hindus. The Chief Justice of the High Court stated that Tipu Sultan was not a freedom fighter; he was a king. The Chief Justice mentioned in court that Tipu Sultan killed lakhs of Hindus and destroyed 4,000 Hindu temples, he added.
Congress leaders, especially CM Siddaramaiah, vehemently stressed that Tipu Sultan was a martyr who sacrificed his life for the country. Siddaramaiah also stated that Tipu was a secular person and right-wingers are projecting him as a fanatic for political gains. He maintained that Tipu had fought wars with the British and denied allegations that he destroyed Hindu temples and killed Hindus.
However, the Congress government is treading cautiously, keeping in view the Lok Sabha elections. The focus is on implementing guarantee schemes to the optimum level and not courting controversy. Siddaramaiah, who celebrated Tipu Sultan Jayanthi on a grand scale during his previous term, did not try to resume the grand celebrations. Amid heavy police security, Tipu Jayanthi celebrations were held at the Summer Palace in the historical town of Srirangapatna.
The opposition in the state seems to be growing stronger against the Congress, with the BJP and JD (S) coming together. Leader of Opposition R Ashoka already stated that Hindus are being treated as second-grade citizens in Karnataka. The proposal to rename Mysuru airport has already taken a serious turn and is likely to cause ripples in state politics ahead, experts say.