New Delhi. Wayanad in Kerala is one of the hot seats in the country in terms of Lok Sabha elections. Contesting the election of former Congress President Rahul Gandhi from this seat is attracting a lot of attention. Meanwhile, a BJP leader has demanded to change the name of Sultan Bathery town of Wayanad, sparking a new debate. BJP leader K Surendran claims that before the invasion of Tipu Sultan in Kerala, this place was known as Ganapathivattam. Therefore, he has requested that the name of Sultan Bathery town be changed to Ganapathivattam.
During the election campaign, the BJP leader raised the issue of Tipu Sultan’s invasion of Malabar, and accused the Congress and LDF of preferring to call the place Sultan Bathery. He asked, “Why should a place in Kerala be named after an invader when its real name is Ganapathivattom? How long ago did Tipu Sultan’s attack occur? What is the significance of Tipu Sultan for Wayanad and its people?”
“Religion conversion done in Wayanad”
BJP leader K Surendran alleged, “People know that this place was earlier called Ganapathivattam. “Congress and LDF are associated with Tipu Sultan, who converted lakhs of people in Wayanad and Malabar.” Late BJP leader Pramod Mahajan first raised this issue in 1984.
According to a report in Times of India, Kerala Tourism has confirmed that Sultan Bathery was earlier known as Ganapathivattam. Apart from Rahul Gandhi, BJP’s K Surendran and LDF candidate Annie Raja are also in the fray from Wayanad.