Panaji, November 07: Denouncing 18th-century ruler Tipu Sultan, the Hindu Janajagruti Samiti, sister outfit of Hindu right-wing group Sanathan Sanstha, on Wednesday asserted that his birth anniversary on November 10 should not be celebrated. In a press release, the outfit stated, "For the last few years, the birth anniversary of Mughal ruler Tipu is being celebrated in Karnataka. Along with Karnataka, the same phenomenon has now spread to other parts of the country too. This is the same Tipu who changed the name of a Hindu village to Mysore and declared it as an Islamic state."

"He pledged to convert all the Kafirs (read: non-muslims) into Islam. He had given written instructions to his men for Islamic knowledge to be imparted to all men and women; forcibly convert or kill those who refuse to voluntarily convert to Islam; and to capture Hindu women, tarnish their sanctity and distribute them among Muslim men," the released added. Tipu Jayanti: No Procession Allowed For or Against Celebrations, Says Karnataka Govt as Political Scene Heats up.

The outfit also slammed the Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) government in Karnataka, saying, that the decision to celebrate the Tipu Jayanti is a "clear and premeditated attempt to appease the minorities and instigate Hindus." "If the birth anniversary of a super-villain like Tipu continues to be celebrated, then soon the birth anniversaries of the likes of Akbar, Babar, and Afzal Khan will also follow suit, thereby marking the commencement of Islamisation of Bharat," the organisation said.

Coming down hard on Congress President Rahul Gandhi on his recent visit to temples across the country, the organisation said, "The Congress party, whose leader - a self-proclaimed devotee of Shiva and an ardent Hindu - Rahul Gandhi, is on a spree of visiting temples from Amarnath to the Shiv Temple in the South, the same Congress government in Karnataka is celebrating the super-villain Tipu, who is responsible for the destruction of thousands of temples." "This is nothing but the hypocrisy and pretense of Congress. Hindu Janajagruti Samiti has also said that if Tipu's commemoration programme is not called off, then Congress will have to face the wrath of Hindus," it further added.