Fact Check: Karnataka High Court declares Tipu Sultan a ‘jihadi’? No, here’s the truth
A viral graphic on X claims that the Karnataka High Court recently declared Tipu Sultan a ‘jihadi’ who fought for his own kingdom and not as a freedom fighter.
By M Ramesh Naik
Claim:Chief Justice Subhro Kamal Mukherjee, in a recent Karnataka High Court ruling—‘Karnataka High Court declares Tipu Sultan was a jihadi who fought the British for his own kingdom and was not a freedom fighter’—has said that Tipu massacred, raped & forcibly converted them to Islam.
Fact:The claim is false and misleading in equal parts. The Karnataka HC made no such declaration in 2025. The graphic image distorts a 2016 court observation that described Tipu Sultan as a monarch, not a freedom fighter, but did not call him a ‘jihadi’ or refer to any massacres, rapes or forced conversions.
Hyderabad: An image circulating on social media has reignited debate over the legacy of Tipu Sultan, the 18th-century ruler of Mysore. On May 29, an X user shared a post claiming that the Karnataka High Court declared Tipu Sultan a ‘jihadi.’
The viral post features an image of former Chief Justice Subhro Kamal Mukherjee with a quote attributed to him: “Karnataka High Court declares Tipu Sultan was a jihadi who fought the British for his own kingdom and was not a freedom fighter.”
The graphic further claims that Tipu ‘massacred, raped & forcibly converted [people] to Islam (sic)’ and that he ‘didn’t fight for India’s independence.’ The user shared the image with the text with the caption, “Finally, truth is out.” (Archive)
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the claim is false and misleading in equal parts.
The Karnataka High Court made no such statement in 2025, and Chief Justice Subhro Kamal Mukherjee, who left the court in 2017, could not have issued such a recent ruling. Also, the graphic text falsely attributes and misrepresents a 2016 court observation.
We searched for recent Karnataka High Court rulings using relevant keywords but found no judgments or news reports supporting the viral claim.
We then examined the context of the quote attributed to Chief Justice Subhro Kamal Mukherjee. According to a Deccan Herald report dated November 4, 2016, a division bench of the Karnataka High Court, comprising Chief Justice Mukherjee and Justice RB Budihal, was hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Kodagu resident KP Manjunatha. The PIL challenged the Karnataka government’s decision to celebrate Tipu Jayanti.
During the hearing, Justice Mukherjee reportedly said that Tipu was a ‘monarch who fought to safeguard his interests’ and was ‘not a freedom fighter.’ However, nowhere did the court refer to Tipu as a ‘jihadi’ or mention any involvement in massacres, rapes or forced conversions.
We also examined the official judgment (Writ Petition No 55353 of 2016 (GM-RES-PIL) available on the E-Courts High Courts of India website.
The court order, dated November 3, 2016, dismissed the PIL and noted that the decision to celebrate Tipu Jayanti was a policy matter for the government. It directed the petitioner to submit a representation to the State’s chief secretary. The order does not contain any reference to the terms ‘jihadi,’ ‘massacre,’ ‘rape,’ or ‘forced conversion.’
An Indian Express report from the same period supported this account. It mentioned that the petitioner’s advocate had described Tipu as a tyrant, while the State defended him as a patriot. The court refrained from endorsing either viewpoint and did not use any inflammatory language.
Tenure of CJ Subhro Kamal Mukherjee
We also verified Chief Justice Subhro Kamal Mukherjee’s tenure. According to a Telegraph India report from July 2023, he served as Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court from February 23, 2016, to October 9, 2017. He has had no role in the court since then, confirming that the quote in the graphic is falsely presented as a recent comment.
Context of the 2016 PIL
The PIL in question stemmed from the Karnataka government’s 2015 decision to celebrate Tipu Sultan’s birth anniversary on November 10 as Tipu Jayanti. The move, initiated by the then Congress-led government, was opposed by BJP leaders who called Tipu a ‘controversial figure.’ A Hindustan Times report from November 2015 noted that violent protests broke out in Kodagu during the celebration, leading to two deaths. This led to the 2016 PIL.
The claim that the Karnataka High Court recently declared Tipu Sultan a ‘jihadi’ who ‘massacred, raped, and forcibly converted Hindus’ is false. No such declaration was made in 2025, and Chief Justice Subhro Kamal Mukherjee has not been part of the court since 2017.
