A monument dedicated to 18th-century Mysore ruler Tipu Sultan was demolished in Maharashtra’s Dhule district. The monument was allegedly illegally built by a local legislator affiliated with the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen party. The Bhartiya Janata Yuva Morcha of Dhule had sent a letter to the deputy Chief minister requesting the monument’s removal.
Devendra Fadnavis, the state’s deputy chief minister, received a letter from the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha of Dhule requesting that this memorial be taken down. Additionally, a letter was delivered to the Dhule Municipal Commissioner and the neighborhood’s superintendent of police.
#WATCH | A monument of Tipu Sultan was built here on the main road, there was no permission for it. We got information that it is an illegal monument. We had a meeting to remove it after which it was removed. There is peace in the area: Sanjay Barkund, SP Dhule, Maharashtra… pic.twitter.com/WjqHIqagbf
— ANI (@ANI) June 10, 2023
The incident was confirmed by Sanjay Barkund, SP Dhule, Maharashtra, to the news agency ANI. He said that there was no authorization given for the Tipu Sultan monument to be erected on the main route. He added that when the police convened a meeting in response to receiving the letter of complaint, the illegal building was taken down early the next morning. Neither before nor after the demolition, there were any reported instances of violence, protests, or other disturbances of the peace.
The civic authorities bulldozed it amid communal tensions over a social media post praising Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. The display of posters featuring Mughal emperor Aurangzeb sparked tension in Maharashtra. The display of such posters has been criticized by politicians like Sharad Pawar, who called for greater cooperation with the police to prevent such incidents from happening again.
Communal clashes broke out during a bandh organized by Hindutva organizations protesting social media posts that exalted Muslim rulers Aurangzeb and Tipu Sultan. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has announced an investigation into the recent display of posters of Aurangzeb in the state, claiming that this is all part of a definite design from certain groups.
He also warned that the glorification of Aurangzeb will not be tolerated and that the supporters of Aurangzeb are from a certain community. The Ahmednagar police have already arrested two out of four people identified to be involved in the display of posters of Aurangzeb at the procession.
