New Delhi: Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday lauded Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan for remembering Tipu Sultan on his death anniversary on May 4, stoking a controversy amid the crucial Lok Sabha elections 2019.

Tharoor took to Twitter to praise Khan: “One thing I personally know about Imran Khan is that his interest in the shared history of the Indian subcontinent is genuine and far-reaching,” he tweeted.

The Pakistani PM on Saturday posted on Twitter while remembering Tipu Sultan on his death anniversary. Khan said he admired the ruler for he chose fighting for freedom.


“Today 4th May is the death anniversary of Tipu Sultan - a man I admire because he preferred freedom and died fighting for it rather than live a life of enslavement," Khan said in his Twitter post.

Responding to Khan’s post Tharoor further said that Khan reads and cares about the shared history of the Indian subcontinent.

He wrote: “One thing I personally know about Imran Khan is that his interest in the shared history of the Indian subcontinent is genuine and far-reaching. He read; he cares. It is disappointing, though, that it took a Pakistani leader to remember a great Indian hero on his punyathithi.”

Imran Khan had praised Tipu Sultan earlier too. In February, he had praised Tipu Sultan’s gallantry at a joint sitting of Parliament

This is not the first time Imran Khan has praised the ruler of the erstwhile Mysore kingdom. In February, the Pakistan prime minister lauded Sultan's gallantry and had called him a hero of the sub-continent.

Tipu Sultan is glorified for his courage and his role in the struggle against British oppression.