Pak PM's tweet on Tipu Sultan sparks war of words

Bengaluru, May 05: A tweet by Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tipu Sultan triggered a war of words between senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah and BJP's Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Sunday, with the former saying he was not the one to "eat biryani" with the premier of an enemy country.

Siddaramaiah's comment came in the wake of Khan's tweet on Tipu Sultan, the 18th-century ruler of the erstwhile Mysore kingdom.

Paying tribute to Tipu Sultan, Khan tweeted on Saturday, saying he admired him because "he preferred freedom and died fighting for it rather than live a life of enslavement".

Retweeting Khan's message, BJP MP Chandrasekhar wrote, "Dear @siddaramaiah avare - time for u (you) to hug Imranji n (and) Bajwaji - @sherryontopp! Thts (That's) quickest way to bcm (become) @RahulGandhi n (and) @priyankagandhi's favourite! #JustDoIt."

His jibe was aimed at Siddaramaiah's reverence for Tipu Sultan. The Congress leader had started the tradition of celebrating Tipu Jayanti as then chief minister of Karnataka three years ago.

Slamming Chandrasekhar, Siddaramaiah tweeted, "Mr @rajeev_mp, Think before you tweet. I am not like your Chor @narendramodi to eat biryani with the PM of our enemy country & also not like you to compromise on ethics to please your bosses.

"It is better to lead a life of Tipu Sultan than like a slave of your bosses like you."

The Congress leader's attack was in reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's surprise visit to Nawaz Sharif, the then prime minister of Pakistan, in Lahore in 2017.
Opposing Tipu Jayanti, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has held protests.

The saffron party has been accusing the Congress of ignoring the "genocide" carried out by the erstwhile ruler of Mysuru, including the killings of Kodavas in Kodagu district and Mandyam Iyengars of Melukote.

PTI