BJP, Congress Workers Clash in Pune Over Sapkal’s Shivaji–Tipu Remark

BJP workers confronted Congress activists in Pune while protesting against Congress leader Harshwardhan Sapkal's remarks 'equating' Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj with Tipu Sultan, with the Opposition party alleging stone pelting during the agitation on Sunday.

As BJP workers protested outside the Congress Bhavan, condemning Sapkal's remarks that have sparked a dispute in the state, there was a significant police presence in the area.

A controversy erupted on Saturday over a portrait of Tipu Sultan in the office of Malegaon Municipal Corporation deputy mayor Shan-e-Hind Nihal Ahmed, which was opposed by Shiv Sena corporators and Hindu outfits.

While highlighting the bravery of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and his advocacy of the idea of "Swarajya," Sapkal cited Tipu Sultan's call for war against the British as evidence that this ideal was expressed in similar terms.

The BJP was accused of "double standards" and pushing a polarisation strategy by Maharashtra Congress leader Sachin Sawant earlier in the day after Sapkal was criticised for the comment.

The Congress spokesperson claimed in a statement that BJP leaders have previously approved or encouraged allusions to 18th-century Mysuru tyrant Tipu Sultan in official forums and public areas, citing multiple examples.

BJP workers staged a protest in Pune, condemning Sapkal's remarks.

Congress has alleged that two of its workers sustained injuries as activists from the saffron party indulged in stone pelting outside the Congress Bhavan.

Speaking to PTI, Mohan Joshi, vice-president of the Congress's Maharashtra unit, said that a large number of BJP workers, including the newly elected mayor, Manjusha Nagpure, gathered to protest outside Congress Bhavan.

"During the protest, stones were pelted at Congress workers and two sustained injuries. We are currently holding a sit-in protest outside the police station in Shivajinagar seeking action," he said.

The police stepped in to stop a flare-up, according to Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 1) Krishikesh Rawale.

A first information report has been filed against Sapkal after BJP Pune city unit president Dheeraj Ghate filed a complaint against him with the Parvati police station for allegedly offending Hindu sensibilities.

Tipu Sultan remains a polarising figure of history, with some invoking his bravery in the battles against the British, while others have pointed to his religious bigotry and ill-treatment of non-Muslims.

According to Sawant's comments, the BJP once praised Tipu Sultan but now criticises him for its polarisation objective.

"What should this hypocrisy be called? Tipu Sultan used to wear a ring bearing the name of Lord Ram," he alleged.

The Congress leader said that the BJP was portraying Tipu Sultan negatively as part of a strategy to create religious divisions.

He reiterated the party's criticism of the BJP's stance on the matter and accused the ruling party of "distorted religious politics" and trying to divide people.

Sawant further accused the BJP of "double standards," pointing out that in 2012, former mayor and current BJP Akola election in-charge Vijay Agrawal proposed a resolution in the Akola Municipal Corporation for the saffron party to rename the standing committee hall "Shaheed-e-Watan Sher-e-Mysore Tipu Sultan."

In 2013, BJP corporators supported a proposal to name a road in Mumbai's M-East ward 'Shaheed Tipu Sultan Marg', and even the current city Mayor, Ritu Tawde, figures among those present, he stated.

In 2001, a road in Andheri (West) was named 'Sher-e-Mysore Tipu Sultan Marg' in the presence of former BJP MP Gopal Shetty and party corporators, with the resolution passed unanimously, Sawant said.

BJP leader and former Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa visited Tipu Sultan's tomb and wrote words of praise in the visitors' book, he claimed.

In 2017, even the then-President Ram Nath Kovind praised Tipu Sultan in the Karnataka assembly, the Congress leader added.