BJP govt orders cancellation of Tipu Sultan Jayanti

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In line with the BJP’s 2018 poll promise, the BS Yediyurappa-led government on Tuesday cancelled the ‘Tipu Sultan Jayanti’ celebrations, which had become an annual event under the previous Congress regime.

In an order, the Kannada & Culture department stated that the ‘Hazrat Tipu Sultan Jayanti’ had been cancelled “with immediate effect”. The decision was taken at a Cabinet meeting Yediyurappa chaired on Monday, said the order. 

Defending the decision, Yediyurappa said legislators from Kodagu had “highlighted incidents of violence during Tipu Jayanti”. “So, the government decided to cancel it,” said the CM.

The celebrations, which began in 2015 under the Siddaramaiah-led Congress government, had sparked protests every time it was held in November. It was first held by the Minority Welfare department before being transferred to the Kannada & Culture department.

The Jayanti had become a political hot potato for the JD(S), with the party being averse to celebrating it. Last year, not a single JD(S) leader, including former chief minister HD Kumaraswamy, attend the event, turning it into a fiasco.   The previous Congress government’s decision to organise the Jayanti was also seen as the party’s move to pander to the minorities. The BJP, in its 2018 election manifesto, had promised to end the celebration of the Jayanti.