BJP using Shivaji-Tipu row to shift focus from core issues, Epstein files: Sapkal

Maharashtra Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal on Sunday alleged that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was deliberately misrepresenting his remarks equating Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Tipu Sultan in order to divert public attention from pressing state issues and the so-called “Epstein files”.

Sapkal has been facing sharp criticism from the BJP after comments he made in Buldhana while responding to media queries about the display of Tipu Sultan’s portrait in the office of Malegaon deputy mayor Shan-e-Hind Nihal Ahmed. The portrait had drawn objections from members of the Shiv Sena and certain Hindu outfits.

Speaking to reporters in Wardha, Sapkal said he had already clarified his position but accused the BJP of “playing mischief” by selectively amplifying his remarks.

“The BJP is spewing venom in connection with my statement. I want to humbly and with equal pride tell them in clear words that they do not need to teach us about Shivaji Maharaj,” he said.

Describing Shivaji Maharaj as the “founder of Hindavi Swarajya” and the “pride, honour and glory of Maharashtra and the Congress”, Sapkal said the Maratha ruler’s valour laid the foundation of self-rule whose inspiration, he claimed, resonates in India’s Constitution.

He maintained that his earlier statement referred to Tipu Sultan drawing inspiration from the Swarajya ideals of Shivaji Maharaj in his resistance against British rule. “However, the statement being promoted is BJP’s mischief,” he alleged.

Sapkal also targeted chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, claiming the CM had criticised him over his remarks on Tipu Sultan but remained silent when he himself was compared to Mughal emperor Aurangzeb.

“The meaning of all this is clear. They want to divert attention from the basic issues of Maharashtra and from the Epstein files, in which a lot is hidden. Bringing caste and religion into every matter is the BJP’s old tactic,” Sapkal charged, accusing the party of giving his “responsible statement” a Hindu-Muslim angle.

He further claimed that BJP leaders had earlier used Tipu Sultan’s imagery during election campaigns across Maharashtra, but were now organising protests and planning to burn his effigies.

In a counter-attack, Sapkal questioned whether the BJP would also burn effigies of Hindutva ideologue V.D. Savarkar or former Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari over what he described as their controversial remarks concerning Shivaji Maharaj.

Echoing Sapkal’s criticism, Maharashtra Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant accused the BJP of “double standards” and pursuing a polarisation agenda. He cited instances of civic body resolutions in cities such as Akola and Mumbai, as well as past occasions where BJP leaders had allegedly praised or associated with Tipu Sultan, to argue that the party’s current stand was politically motivated.

The controversy has added to the ongoing war of words between the Congress and the BJP in Maharashtra, with both sides accusing the other of exploiting historical figures for political gain.

With PTI inputs