'Who is Tipu Sultan, what is his importance?': BJP's Wayanad candidate promises to rename Sultan Bathery town to Ganapativattam

WAYANAD: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Kerala president K Surendran, who is contesting from Wayanad, stirred up a controversy on Thursday by promising to change the name of Sultan Bathery town to Ganapativattam, if he wins the upcoming Lok Sabha election.

"Actually, the place is Ganapativattam. How many years ago did the Sultan's invade? Who is Tipu Sultan? How is he related to the people of Wayanad? What is the importance of Tipu Sultan? That place was known as Ganapativattam. People are aware of this," Surendran said while speaking to ANI.

Alleging that Tipu Sultan, the erstwhile ruler of Mysore led several religious atrocities in Wayanad and Malabar, the Kerala BJP chief said that both his rival political alliances, the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Democratic Alliance and the Congress-led United Democratic Front have renamed the place to Sultan Bathery.

"People know that Ganapativattam was renamed because both LDF and UDF, are with Tipu Sultan. Tipu Sultan attacked many temples, converted lakhs of Hindus in Kerala, especially in Wayanad and Malabar regions," Surendran said.

Surendran is contesting against the Communist Party of India (CPI), Annie Raja, and Congress sitting MP Rahul Gandhi.

Kerala, which sends 20 parliamentarians to the Lok Sabha will go to polls on April 26. Counting of votes will take place on June 4.

Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India. Don't miss daily games like Crossword, Sudoku, Location Guesser and Mini Crossword.