Were Akbar and Tipu Sultan secular or Islamist?
The apologists and propagandists who seek to justify Islamic rule in India invariably point to mostly two specific figures -Akbar and Tipu Sultan for their vaunted secularism ,glory and nationalism. Let us leave us aside the curious aspect that in nearly 700 years or intermittent Muslim rule which saw hundreds of rulers in various parts of India, secularists and Muslim apologists are only able to provide two which are supposed to be palatable to Hindus! And even these two are certainly are not lacking in bigotry and monstrosity. That more than anything highlighted the extreme cruelty and exploitation of most of the other Muslim rulers rather than suggest a tolerance and humane governance was typical of Islamic empire by using these two individuals as example! But that is the sad state of debate and scholarship today! Lets start in chronological order. I find it rather strange that even some Hindu revivalists such as Sitaram Goel are willing to pardon Akbar's excesses if only he