Mangaluru: The mud-slinging match between the Congress and the BJP over the November 10 Tipu Jayanti took a new turn on Sunday with the former releasing photographs of state BJP leaders sporting Tipu’s headgear.

The release come sin the backdrop of anti-Tipu statements made by several BJP leaders, including Union minister AnanthKumar Hegde and MPs Shobha Karandlaje, Nalin Kumar Kateel and Pratap Simha. The BJP leaders had branded Tipu Sultan ‘antiHindu’ and maintained they would not attend Tipu celebrations organized by the state government. The Congress hit back at the BJP, releasing old photographs that showed BJP leaders BS Yeddyurappa, Jagadish Shettar and R Ashoka participating in a function organized to pay tribute to Tipu . One photograph shows Yeddyurappa wearing Tipu’s headgear and holding a sword. A Congress leader said: “These photographs are proof of the BJP’s double standards and hypocrisy. The BJP leaders who had earlier praised Tipu Sultan are now criticizing him for political gains.”

CM Siddaramaiah took potshots at the BJP and said: “It was Tipu who issued the first battle cry of freedom. He waged four wars against the British, and our government is proud to celebrate him.” The CM said in Bantwal that his government was also celebrating the contributions made by Basavanna, Kempe Gowda, Kanakadasa, Narayana Guru and other saints and philosophers, but the BJP was trying to create a controversy out of Tipu Jayanti.

BJP leader C T Ravi alleged Tipu was notorious for his atrocities against Hindus and charged the government with playing appeasement politics by celebrating TipuJayanti.