BJP Minister’s remark against Tipu kicks up row in Karnataka

The clamour for dismissal of Minister for Higher Education D H Shankarmurthy from the JD (S)-BJP coalition Cabinet reached a crescendo in Karnataka yesterday with intellectuals, writers and historians joining Muslim groups in criticizing the Minister’s “loose statements” against eighteen century warrior king Tipu Sultan.

D H Shankarmurthy, who belongs to the BJP, had stirred up the hornets’ nest recently by not only dubbing the erstwhile ruler of Mysore kingdom as “anti-Kannada”, but also questioning his inclusion in the history books prescribed for students in the State.

The Congress party had immediately swung into action by seeking his ouster from the coalition Ministry for “stoking communal fire” by his “thoughtless” comments against Tipu Sultan, who had laid down his life fighting against the British.

Senior Congress leader H Vishwanath told a press conference that it was obvious that the Higher Education Minister had a “communal mindset” and a “jaundiced eye”. “Tipu Sultan was a Kannadiga by any yardstick and had valiantly fought the British occupation of the region”, he said.

Noted historians like retired Vice Chancellor of Mangalore and Goa Universities B Sheikh Ali termed Shankarmurthy’s remarks as “baseless” and pointed out that Tipu Sultan had appointed Kannadigas like Dewan Poornaiah, Srinivasa Rao and Appaji Rao as his administrators. Though Persian was the official language in the region till as late as 1833, Tipu Sultan had patronized Kannada schools in his kingdom till his death in 1799.

On Thursday, a group of intellectuals comprising noted theatre personality Girish Karnad and leading educationist and former Minister B K Chandrashekar dared D H Shankarmurthy to an open debate on Tipu Sultan’s credentials as a Kannadiga and his contribution to the region’s development.

Noted Kannada poet G Marulasiddaiah endorsed Tipu Sultan’s contribution to Kannadigas and accused the BJP Minister of trying to “saffronize” history and further its hidden agenda and trigger communal polarization in the country.

But, Shankarmurthy remained unfazed by the growing criticism to his controversial remarks against Tipu Sultan. The BJP Minister said Tipu Sultan was “anti-Kannada” and a usurper. Shankarmurthy even said Tipu Sultan had changed the court language from Kannada to Persian and minted coins engraved in Persian language.

A public survey conducted by a regional Kannada television channel on Thursday showed a large number of people coming down heavily on the BJP leader for trying to stoke communal hatred by making uncharitable remarks against the erstwhile ruler of Mysore.