Karnataka CM HD Kumaraswamy to give Tipu Jayanti celebrations a miss

Karnataka chief minister H D Kumaraswamy will miss the Tipu Jayanti celebrations due to ill health and the deputy CM G Parameshwara who belongs to the Congress party is likely to inaugurate it.

Karnataka coalition government’s move to celebrate the Jayanti of Tipu Sultan – a contentious ruler of the erstwhile Mysuru kingdom – has run into another controversy.

Karnataka chief minister H D Kumaraswamy will miss the Tipu Jayanti celebrations due to ill health and the deputy CM G Parameshwara who belongs to the Congress party is likely to inaugurate it. (HT Photo)

The event, which is being supported by the ruling Congress – JD(S) coalition, was said to be marked with a function at Vidhana Soudha, the seat of power in the state. However, it has now emerged that the chief minister H D Kumaraswamy will miss the event due to ill health and the deputy CM G Parameshwara who belongs to the Congress party is likely to inaugurate it.

The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party and other Sangh Parivar affiliates have opposed the celebrations claiming that Tipu was a religious bigot and carried out pogroms against Hindus.