The Malegaon Tipu Sultan portrait row has reached the Bombay High Court after Deputy Mayor Shaan-e-Hind Nihal Ahmed challenged directions from the municipal administration and police to remove the portrait from her office. A bench led by Chief Justice Maheshchandra Tripathi and Justice Adwait Sethna has issued notice to the Maharashtra government and directed it to file a response.
The portrait was displayed in the deputy mayor’s office at the Malegaon Municipal Corporation alongside images of Mahatma Gandhi, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Rani Lakshmibai, Subhas Chandra Bose, Dr BR Ambedkar, Savitribai Phule, Mahatma Jyotirao Phule, Bhagat Singh and Rajarshi Shahu Maharaj, according to the report. Municipal leader Nilesh Kakade objected to the inclusion of Tipu Sultan’s image, following which the civic administration and police directed that it be removed.
The dispute has been linked to government rules governing portraits of national and historical figures in official offices. Authorities cited a 1965 circular and government resolutions issued in 2002 while directing the removal. The state’s position before the court is that an authorised government list and set of rules governs which portraits may be displayed in government offices, and that Tipu Sultan’s name does not appear on that list.
Ahmed’s petition questions why particular objection was raised to Tipu Sultan’s portrait when images of several other historical figures are displayed in public and government premises. Her lawyers also referred to the original artistic version of the Constitution of India, which they said contains an image associated with Tipu Sultan. The petition further refers to the presence of Tipu Sultan’s portrait in the Nashik district court and some other public institutions.
The issue first emerged in February 2026, after Ahmed assumed charge as the newly appointed deputy mayor and placed the portrait in her office. BJP and Shiv Sena representatives from the Eknath Shinde faction, along with local Hindutva organisations, opposed the display. They argued that Tipu Sultan was not included in the official list of national heroes and described the decision as vote-bank politics. The municipal administration subsequently removed the portrait, citing government protocol and applicable rules.
After renovation work at the deputy mayor’s office was completed in the last week of August, Ahmed placed the portrait there again alongside images of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar. She had earlier said that she would reinstall it. The dispute was also brought to the attention of Maharashtra minister Dada Bhuse.
The state government opposed the petition during the hearing. The Bombay High Court’s notice requires the government to respond to the challenge; the supplied report does not state that the court has issued a final ruling on whether the portrait can remain in the municipal office.
