"Danger gleams like sunshine to a brave man's eyes": Savarkar, a writer, trendsetter – man of many firsts, such as being the one to write 1857 Freedom Struggle that irked British into banning it even before its publication, whom Indira Gandhi worshipped

Veer Savarkar and his ideas have become the most contentious political issue of our age. In the current times, the major dividing line of the country’s political spectrum is Vinayak Damodar Savarkar. On one side there is a huge community who respect Savarkar, adore him, and accept him as a public icon. On the other side of the spectrum, are the ones who oppose ideologue.

Koo App दिवंगत अटल बिहारी वाजपेयी जी ने वीर सावरकर जी को तप, त्याग,तेज, तर्क, तीर और तलवार के समतुल्य बताया था View attached media content - Satyaagrah (@SatyaagrahIndia) 28 Aug 2022

Vinayak Damodar Savarkar occupies a unique spot in India’s long and illustrious list of freedom fighters.

He envisioned the idea of complete freedom and liberation from the chains of British slavery. Advocating the use of arms and force to achieve the mentioned cause, he was thus known to differ from Gandhi on the policy of India’s struggle for freedom. There were many interesting tussles between the two. Unconventional in every sense of the word this poet/writer was a man of many firsts, to mention a few, such as:

1. The first Indian to write a detailed account of  India’s 1857 War for freedom, such was the impact of this book that it was banned by the British even before its publication
2. The first political prisoner who dared to escape, unfortunately, ended up being arrested on French soil.
3. The first political prisoner in the world who was sentenced to Transportation for Life twice, a feat second to none in the history of the British empire

How did India forget its hero?

But who has drawn the line? Well, ideology can be held responsible for it, but the one who inscribed the line by denying the contributions of Veer Savarkar is none other than the grand old party of India, Congress.

What happened after independence, China dove Jawaharlal Nehru who imbibed socialism and communalism allowed the imposition of left ideology in the intellectual spaces, like universities, and media. He even injected a dose of socialism into Congress. The main hit was targeted at maligning the nationalist freedom fighters and erasing their contribution and their legacy. The one affected most was freedom fighter Vinayak Damodar Savarkar.

Congress hates Savarkar

For Congress, freedom fighter Veer Savarkar has always been a source of scorn, isn’t it? We have all been witness to how former AICC chief Rahul Gandhi has lampooned and ridiculed Veer Savarkar in his lectures. 

But while the Congress castigates and censures Veer Savarkar and many leaders of the grand old party refuse to acknowledge his phenomenal contribution to the fight against the British to secure our motherland, we have found one important letter, which certainly acts as an alibi to the fact that he played an active role in the freedom struggle. 

Congress has done multiple attempts to put a blot on the legacy of Veer Savarkar by fake allegations like, he apologized several times to the Britishers and wrote mercy petitions, and he was in a homosexual relationship with Nathuram Godse. Congress even suspended the principals and professors who tried to propagate the actual history.

Under the various regimes of ‘secular’ Congress, the contribution of Savarkar was severely undermined, as Congress did not like the Hindutva icon. A party inventing the concept of Bhagwa-Aatankwad could not afford to do more than this.

In one of his rallies at Chhattisgarh, Rahul Gandhi tried to prove that venerable revolutionary Vinayak Damodar Savarkar was never a patriot and prostrated before the British for mercy.

Following this, the clan of Savarkar has made it clear that they’re taking legal action against him for the same. In an interview with the Republic, Ranjit Savarkar, grandson of Vinayak Savarkar, said the following:-

“This is absolutely false information. He had written various applications for his various demands…….Even the British home secretary at that time that there was no trace of regret. This means that Congress is doing nothing but deliberately politicizing the issue.”

He also added, “…..This is a very unfortunate issue. I would like to say that either Rahul Gandhi is a fool or he hasn’t read history properly. If he had read history, he wouldn’t have made such allegations….. I give him an open challenge to prove if Jawahar Lal Nehru completed any of his sentences…” The lawyer for the Savarkar family, Vishwas Jain, confirmed the legal action.

This is not the first time that Rahul Gandhi has been accused of insulting the right-wing revolutionary. On umpteen occasions, he has accused him of being complicit in the assassination of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. He has even accused him of orchestrating riots post-partition, apart from his web of lies on the mercy petition.

It is time that one should come clean on the so-called mercy petition. Savarkar was not the only one who was acquitted. In 1921 the then British Emperor, George V, issued an amnesty order, under which prisoners of Andaman jails would be released on the following conditions:-

1. No participation in political activities for at least the next 10 years
2. Release on Medical Grounds
3. Probationary internment for a while when inside the Indian peninsula etc.

Under this very order, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and his elder brother, Ganesh Babarao Savarkar both were released, along with Bhai Parmanand and Ram Saran Days, who were members of the Ghadar faction. Who lobbied for the release? This must have given massive burns to left liberals as Mohandas K Gandhi and Madan Mohan Malviya lobbied for their release. Were they British stooges as well?

Also, if Vinayak Damodar Savarkar was a British stooge, he would’ve been treated the same way as Hans Raj Vohra or Phanindra Nath Ghosh, though it’s another matter altogether that they could never enjoy their riches completely. Instead, Savarkar was interned without any communication at Ratnagiri in 1924, and it took 13 more years for the political restrictions to be lifted. How did he prostrate before the British for mercy then? What if the petitions weren’t real at all? What if they were planted?

Under the Congress ministries formed by Govt. Of India Act 1935, many people, including prisoners associated with the Lahore Conspiracy Case and Chittagong uprising, etc., such as Batukeshwar Dutt, Yogendra Shukla, Subodh Roy, Ambika Chakraborty etc. were released on exactly the same grounds.

Vikram Sampath schools Congress

 Savarkar was the one who envisioned the idea of complete freedom and liberation from the chains of British slavery. In fact, the unconventional poet/writer was a trendsetter – a man of many firsts, such as being the first one to give a detailed description of the 1857 Freedom Struggle, which irked the British into banning it even before its publication.

The man daring to make public the historical facts is Vikram Sampath. As the Savarkar-Tipu Sultan row escalated in Karnataka, Vikram Sampath with just one question has put Congress in a tight spot. The question was, “Why did Indira Gandhi honor Savarkar if he was vile?” And this led to digging up the connection between Veer Savarkar and Indira Gandhi. Sampath slammed the Congress and said that the Congress leaders need to go back and refer to Indira Gandhi who said Savarkar’s role in India’s freedom struggle is unique.

The Indira Gandhi-Savarkar connection

Indira Gandhi worshipped Savarkar, and this was quite evident in Indira Gandhi’s letter that she wrote during her prime ministerial term. A letter written by Rahul’s Grandmother Indira Gandhi praising ‘Savarkar’ when she was the Prime Minister has now come to light and has come in handy for the BJP to beat Rahul with.

Responding to a letter written by Pandit Bakhle, secretary of the Swatnatray veer Savarkar Rashtriya Smarak making plans for celebrating the birth centenary of Savarkar. In her letter dated May 20, 1980, Indira Gandhi writes back to Bakhle saying, “I have received your letter of 8th May 1980. Veer Savarkar’s daring defiance of the British Government has its own importance in the annals of our Freedom movement. I wish success to the plans to celebrate the birth centenary of the remarkable son of India."

Well-known author Vaibhav Purandare who has written a book on Savarkar, "The true story of the father of Hindutva’ confirmed that the letter written by Indira Gandhi was authentic. The letter is true, not just this Indira Gandhi had also condoled Savarkar’s death in 1966. She (Indira Gandhi) had released a statement praising Savarkar as a revolutionary who had inspired many in the country.”

To add on, Indira Gandhi got a stamp issued in his honor after his death in 1966. She even got a documentary film on Savarkar made through the government’s Information and Broadcasting ministry. Also, to the surprise of Congress, so that the nation remembers the national hero, Indira Gandhi even gave a personal grant to the Savarkar memorial in Mumbai. We want to reiterate Savarkar’s question that the “Congress needs to ask itself why did Indira Gandhi, as the PM, do all these things.”

References:

tfipost.com