Mumbai, February 17 Maharashtra Congress leader Sachin Sawant on Tuesday claimed that BJP's Mumbai president Ameet Satam had previously supported a proposal to name a road here after Tipu Sultan, but has now changed his stance for political reasons.
Sawant rejected Satam's assertion that the name of Tipu Sultan, the 18th-century ruler of Mysuru, had always been opposed by the BJP, calling it "factually incorrect".
Notably, state Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal has come under fire from the BJP for "equating" Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj with Tipu Sultan.
Satam also criticized Sapkal after the controversy erupted last week.
The BJP leader on Tuesday said that Sapkal "should rub his nose on the ground and publicly apologize" for comparing Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj with Tipu Sultan.
In a post on X, state Congress spokesperson Sawant claimed that Satam had previously supported a proposal to name a road in Mumbai after Tipu Sultan and questioned his recent opposition to the move.
He also rejected Satam's assertion that the name had always faced opposition, calling it "factually incorrect" and a change in the stance for political reasons.
Sawant further alleged that organizations linked to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) had historically acknowledged Tipu Sultan's legacy and even encouraged younger generations to draw inspiration from him.
He cited a children's publication series, 'Bharat Bharati', brought out decades ago, in which a book on Tipu Sultan was published around 1970.
The present opposition to Tipu Sultan is driven by "politics of polarization" and not by any change in historical facts, Sawant claimed.
"History has not changed, but political equations have," he said, accusing the BJP and RSS of adopting "double standards" for electoral gains.