Experts say that the ruling party is employing this strategy to divert attention from crucial topics.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson MG Mahesh said that Indian history should only be written by a Hindu.
The remarks from Mahesh come in response to Congress leader D.K. Shivakumar’s assertion that Tipu Sultan was the father of silk inKarnataka. D.K. Shivakumar was quoted saying, “Tipu sultan has brought silk in India and that is the fact, who are we to change Indian history.”
Anish, from media team of BJP said that Congress needs to tell us which history book says that Jihadi Tipu Sultan brought silk to India. “There is no proof for such a claim,” he said. MG Mahesh reiterating his party’s stand said that , “For a long time, Indian children have been taught biased and inaccurate history. We pledged that the BJP government is working towards revealing the truth, and will remove each and every unfair Mughal chapter from Indian history.”
BJP’s comments have sparked a debate about the role of politics in shaping historical narratives in India. Karnataka BJP legislator Basangouda Patil Yatnal early this year has reportedly instructed his followers not to vote for Muslim candidates or those associated with Tipu Sultan.
According to reports, NCERT has made changes to the history curriculum by removing significant portions related to the Mughal period from textbooks meant for Class 7 and Class 12. The content related to this period has been significantly reduced in Class 8 textbooks and has been entirely eliminated from textbooks meant for Classes 9 to 11.
Nawaz Ali Khan, a retired history professor, said, “It is erroneous for BJP to claim that history was written by foreigners and leftists. BJP should verify before making significant statements.”
In February this year, Nalin Kumar Kateel, leader of BJP, made an appeal for the public to “eliminate” all “devoted supporters” of Tipu Sultan, the 18th century Mysore ruler.
Kalai, President for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the BTM assembly constituency said, “Those who are making certain comments lack literacy. These individuals aim to erase factual information and rewrite history to fit their own agendas. They have already begun this process by removing chapters related to the Mughal period.”
Umesh Babu, representative of AAP in the Byatarayanapura Assembly, said that the removal of Mughal chapters from textbooks is an attempt to promote a specific narrative, which sends a negative message to the secular population of India.
He added, “Nowadays, it has become a common practice to raise irrelevant issues to distract from the real problems in both India and Karnataka.”
Devendra, Senior Leader of the Indian National Congress (INC) said that after every three months BJP comes up with some controversial remark on Tipu Sultan. “BJP repeatedly makes controversial remarks about Tipu Sultan and uses derogatory language for his followers, which shows their lack of knowledge about Indian history. BJP has to stop making such comments, as they are hurting people’s sentiments.”
Nawaz said that the ruling party is employing this strategy to divert attention from crucial topics such as water, environment, and infrastructure and keep their own agenda in focus.
