MYSURU: After azaan and hijab rows, the state, facing elections next year, is set for another showdown between Congress and BJP as Congress MLA Tanveer Sait on Saturday announced that a 100-foot-tall statue of Mysuru ruler Tipu Sultan will be installed.
Sait’s ambitious project to erect Tipu’s bronze statue either in Srirangapatna on the banks of Cauvery or in Mysuru has stirred up a political storm.
The Narasimharaja constituency MLA received a strong backing from Opposition leader Siddaramaiah. “What is wrong with Sait announcing Tipu Sultan’s statue,” he shot back.
Higher Education Minister Dr CN Ashwath Narayan was among the first from the saffron party to react to Sait’s statement, saying it would remain just a dream. Sri Rama Sene head Pramod Muthalik threatened to demolish Tipu’s statue wherever it comes up.
Sait said Muslims are disappointed by regular insults to Tipu. “We will not remain quiet. We have to spread the achievements and valour of Tipu to the world,” he said. He clarified that it is an initiative of followers of Tipu and not of Congress.
BJP MLC hails Tipu as a great warrior
“Tipu fought against the British. He was the first to call the state Karnataka,” Sait claimed.
BJP MLC AH Vishwanath said, “Tipu was a great warrior. He is a symbol of self-respect and pride of Kannadigas. He did not bow before the British like other kings. A few vested interests have conspired to rewrite history, but no one can dispute Tipu’s courage and conviction.”
‘Believed in social justice’ Political commentator Prof Muzafar Asadiu said, “Tipu is an embodiment
of anti-colonialism, economic development and administration. He believed in social justice and protected the dignity of women.
A statue will make him stagnant and will end up in the sphere of statue competition. It is better to carry forward his ideas and set up a university or institution.”