Naming University after Tipu Sultan is an insult to Catholics: T J Abraham

Naming University after Tipu Sultan is an insult to Catholics: T J Abraham

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangalore, Feb 15, 2013: Forums of the Christian Catholic community in the state have reacted strongly against the move to name the University in Srirangapatna after Tipu Sultan. Demanding that the university be named after Rev Ferdinand Kittel instead, they said naming the varsity after the Muslim king is an ‘insult’ to Catholicism.

Speaking at the press meet held at Poonja International on Feb 15, Friday social activist T J Abraham said, “We welcome the university in Srirangapatna and want it to be named after Rev Kittel, who compiled the first Kannada-English dictionary and was a strong Kannada activist.”

Abraham said, Tipu Sultan, forcibly converted as many as 70,000  Catholics and Hindus to Islam along the state’s coast.” People who respect Karnataka and Kannada will not oppose Rev Kittel’s name, he said. Tippu has not contributed anything to education. Instead of him, if the Central government would name the University after Former President of India APJ Abdul Kalam, then it would be acceptable, he added.

Kannada Christians Association president Raphael Raj said that the movement  will be intensified and protests will be held in Bangalore and Mangalore in the third week of February.