Who was Tipu Sultan, where was he born and other information is something NCERT books baby feed us, so lets come straight to the point.
Tipu Sultan of Mysore spent most of his life in Kerala, waging wars of territorial annexation and Islamic conversions. Therefore, the true character of Tipu Sultan can be best judged from his activities in Kerala.
There is enough evidence, available in many authentic records of his military operations in Kerala, to justify that Tipu Sultan was a fanatic tyrant who was responsible for the destruction of hundreds of Hindu temples, large-scale forcible conversion of the Hindus, and perpetration of unimaginable brutalities on the Hindu population in Kerala.
All the available records such as Malabar Manual of William Logan,Historical Sketches of Col. Wilks, Voyage to East Indies of Fra Bartolomaeo, histories of Kerala written by K.P. Padmanabha Menon and Sardar K.M. Panicker, official reports of the English Company, and the records of Chirackal, Zamorin and Palghat royal families besides those from Trichur, Guruvayoor, Thirunavaya and Perumanam temples, clearly and conclusively depict Tipu Sultan as the most intolerant, cruel, and fanatic Muslim ruler in the South.
His main object, like his father Hyder Ali's, was to subjugate the whole of Kerala and convert its Hindu population to Islamic faith by force. For this, hismost dependable and obedient accomplices were his equally cruel and treacherous co-religionists—the Mappilas (local Muslim converts) of North Malabar.
Despite all this, the fanatic Tipu Sultan of Mysore is still glorified as a liberal and magnanimous king.
According to the official report of Col. Fullarton of the British forces stationed in Mangalore, worst type of brutalities on Brahmins were committed by Tipu Sultan in 1783 during his siege of Palghat Fort which was being defended by the Zamorin and his Hindu soldiers. “Tipu’s soldiers daily exposed the heads of many innocent Brahmins within sight from the fort for Zamorin and his Hindu followers to see. It is asserted that the Zamorin rather than witness such enormities and to avoid further killing of innocent Brahmins, chose to abandon the Palghat Fort” (p. 500).
As he proceeded with his Islamic wars against the Hindu population in Kerala, Tipu Sultan committed many more brutalities. The Rajas were unable to resist. But they did not like to be mute witnesses to brutalities perpetrated by the Muslim army of Tipu. As a consequence, the Kadathanad and Kottayam Rajas sent requests to the English Company at Tellicherrry for protection, stating that “they could no longer trust Tipu Sultan and beseeching the Company to take the Brahmins, the poor and the whole kingdom under their protections” (p. 507).
During the notorious Padayottakkalam from 1783 to 1792, Tipu Sultan had committed a variety of atrocities against the Hindus and Christians in Kerala. Some of them as narrated by the Christian victims are vividly described by the famous traveller and historian, Fra Bartolomaeo, in his well-known book, Voyage to East Indies.
TIPU’S FANATICISM
Here are some of the letters which Tipu Sultan had sent to his army commanders in different parts of Kerala and outside.
Following are from the research articles published by Sardar K.M. Panicker in the Bhasha Poshini magazine of Chingam 1099 of the Malayalam Era corresponding to August, 1923. They were obtained by him from The India Office Library in London during his intensive research regarding Kerala history. Tipu’s real character is revealed here.
1. Letter dated March 22, 1788, to Abdul Kadir: “Over 12,000 Hindus were ‘honoured’ with Islam. There were many Namboodiris (Brahmins) among them. This achievement should be widely publicised among the Hindus. There the local Hindus should be brought before you and then converted to Islam. No Namboodiri (Brahmin) should be spared.
2. Letter dated December 14, 1788, to his Army Chief in Calicut:
“I am sending two of my followers with Mir Hussain Ali. With their assistance, you should capture and kill all Hindus. Those below 20 may be kept in prison and 5,000 from the rest should be killed by hanging from the tree-tops. These are my orders.”
3. Letter dated December 21, 1788, to Sheik Kutub: “242 Nair's are being sent as prisoners. Categorise them according to their social and family status. After honouring them with Islam, sufficient dress materials may be given to the men and their women.”
4. Letter dated January 18, 1790, to Syed Abdul Dulai: “With the grace of Prophet Muhammed and Allah, almost all Hindus in Calicut are converted to Islam. Only a few are still not converted on the borders of Cochin State. I am determined to convert them also very soon. I consider this as Jehad to achieve that object.”
TEMPLES DESTROYED BY TIPU
The Mysore Gazetteer says that the ravaging army of Tipu Sultan had destroyed more than 8000 temples in South India. The temples of Malabar and Cochin principalities had to bear the brunt of plunder and destruction.
Some of the other famous temples looted and desecrated were as follows:
Triprangot, Thrichembaram, Thirunavaya, Thiruvannoor, Calicut Thali, Hemambika Temple, the Jain Temple in Palghat, Mammiyur, Parambatali, Venkitangu, Pemmayanadu, Tiruvanjikulam, Terumanam, Vedakhumnnathan Temple of Trichur, Belur Siva Temple, Shri Veliyanattukava, Varakkal, Puthu, Govindapuram, Keraladhiswara, Trikkandiyur, Sukapuram, Maranehei Temple of Aaalvancheiri Tambrakkal, Vengara Temple of Aranadu, Tikulam, Ramanathakra, Azhinjalam
Indiannur, Mannur Narayan Kanniar and Vadukunda Siva Temple of Madai.
The Trikkavu Temple of Ponnani was converted into Military Garrison.The Christian Pilgrimage centre of Palayur Church and Varapuzha Church and Mission buildings were among the several churches destroyed by the ravaging army of Tipu.
TIPU’S LAND-GRANTS AND PUJAS
Lets have a look at the circumstances that prompted the Islamic bigot, Tipu Sultan, to offer land-grants and financial assistance to some Hindu temples, particularly the Sringeri Mutt.
When the astrologers predicted an approaching malefic period from 1790
onwards and the combined forces of the British, the Nizam and the Marathas started surrounding Srirangapatanam, Tipu Sultan panicked and therefore did some good deeds—offering land-grants and even pujas and feeding Brahmin—mainly to ward off the evil effects and to get assistance from his Hindu subjects in his war efforts. He was reported to have even fallen prostrate before His Holiness Sringeri Shankaracharya and sought the latter’s pardon and blessings (SakthanThampuran by P. Raman Menon, and History of Mysore by Lewis Rice).
Historical truth should not be allowed to be suppressed, or distorted, or falsified in order to project a national villain as a national hero. A tyrant must be remembered as a tyrant only or else it will be a insult to the great sons of Ma Bharati, who lived and died for the honour and unity of the Bharatvarsh.
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