In contentious remark, BJP leader says Karnataka elections are Tipu vs Savarkar

Nalin Kumar Kateel, the president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Karnataka, has made yet another strange statement. In January of this year, he advised party members to avoid discussing "small issues" like roads and sewage canals and instead to concentrate on problems like "Love Jihad." According to the BJP MP, the upcoming elections in Karnataka would be a clash of ideologies between Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, a leader of the Hindutva ideology, and Tipu Sultan, the former ruler of Mysore.

Speaking at a public meeting in Shivamogga, the MP said, "This time, the State Assembly elections will not be fought between Congress and BJP, but between the ideologies of Savarkar and Tipu." He urged Congress leader and former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to debate over the ideals of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and Tipu Sultan.

"They celebrated Tipu Jayanti, which is not required in this state and criticised Savarkar. I challenge Siddaramaiah, the next elections are (to be fought) between Tipu and Savarkar. Let us discuss, come on if this country requires a patriot like Savarkar or Tipu?" Kateel added, the News Minute reported.

His remarks at a party rally in Mangaluru turned controversial as he told BJP members to prioritise the 'Love Jihad' problem over conversations with voters about infrastructure and development. He asserted that only a BJP-led administration could resolve this problem by enacting laws to stop it.

Right-wing organisations created the myth of "love jihad" to spread the idea that Muslim males purposefully "trap" and marry Hindu women in order to convert them to Islam.