Mangaluru: Dakshina Kannada District Administration, Zilla Panchayat, District Minorities Welfare Cell and Kannada and Culture Department jointly celebrated Tipu Jayanti amidst much chaos at the Zilla Panchayat office on Tuesday, November 10. Mangaluru South MLA JR Lobo presided over the programme.
Dakshina Kannada District In-Charge Minister B Ramanath Rai in his inaugural speech said that it was important that people studied Tipu in detail before labeling him a fanatic. “Certain outfits have been indulging themselves in propaganda against the Tiger of Mysuru. He was one of the first freedom fighters of the country. Tipu was instrumental in Mysuru’s victory against the British in all the four Mysuru wars”, he opined.
“Tipu Sultan is the son of the land. Paying a fitting tribute to him is our duty. We had chapters on Tipu in our school curriculum. However, nobody revolted against it back then. Why now?” he questioned, adding that it was just the mischief mongers who wanted to disrupt peace in the society that were creating a ruckus against Tipu Jayanti.
The key speaker of the programme, historian Dr Uday Barkoor said that Tipu was one of the key resources responsible for the revolution of South Karnataka. He slammed forums calling him a fanatic and urged people to learn facts from verified sources before drawing a conclusion on Tipu’s character. Holding Tipu responsible for the development of agriculture and sericulture in Karnataka, Dr Barkoor said it was Tipu’s farsightedness that Karnataka was such a developed state.
“India would have been a pioneer in technology had there been only ten dynamic personalities as Tipu Sultan,” he opined.
MLC Ivan said that Tipu might have killed a few Hindus and Christians. However his intention was to protect his subjects from the British and transform the society.
Mangaluru North MLA BA Moideen Bava said it was evident from history that Tipu had created three places of worship catering to all religions near his palace and added that it was he who protected the Brahmins at Sringeri temple while the British attacked the temple.
Protests held, violence erupts
Earlier, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal staged a protest against the celebration of Tipu Jayanti outside the ZP office even as the District Deputy Commissioner AB Ibrahim went ahead with the keynote address.
The Police Department foreseeing a possible uproar deployed tight security at the ZP premises, putting up barricades and closing the gates to prevent protestors from entering the ZP office.
The protestors led by VHP leader Jagadish Shenava, Bajrang Dal Convenor Sharan Pumpwell and Franklin Monteiro of BJP Minority Morcha shouted slogans against the government and the District Administration and waved black flags. Around 100 protestors were detained.
