Downplaying and Denigrating the Sufferings of Veer Savarkar for Political Reasons is not in the interest of the Nation

We will be ungrateful if we downplay for selfish and political interests, the sacrifices and sufferings of Veer Savarkar and his family.  When we visited Cellular Jail in the first week of January 2023, we also visited the Cell where Veer Savarkar was kept for 11 years.  We were not able to stay there even for 10 minutes, in the midst of walls. Imagine, how Veer Savarkar might have spent his 11 years in this horrible Cell all alone.  He was given a mud pot and a bucket of water.  The prisoners have to use the mud pot for nature’s call and use the water both for drinking and cleaning. 

The Jail officials say that he was a revolutionary even when he was in the Cellular Jail.  He refused to take food protesting against the atrocities of the British Jail authorities. He was also fed forcibly. 

Prison Cell where Veer Savarkar spent 11 years

Bot Veer Savarkar and his elder brother were kept in Cellular Jail and tortured. Veer Savarkar was even chained. His house properties were confiscated by the British at Pune. His family was suffering.

During the freedom movement, there were differences of views between the top leaders on the methodology.   Followers of Mahatma Gandhi thought Ahimsa would yield results.  Netaji followers adopted a different path.  But both had the same goal of getting freedom for the country.  Veer Savarkar was an aggressive and revolutionary leader.  The British was really scared of him. Way back in 1905, he wanted foreign textiles to be boycotted and the same was later adopted by Mahatma Gandhi. He assisted Bikaji Cama to hoist the Indian Flag at German in 1907.  He was an atheist.  He wanted the Indian History to be rewritten with more focus on Indian glory and not glorifying invaders.  This had angered the British and liberals then.  His concept of ‘Hindutva’ is more confused with the present day political ‘Hindutva’.  Though he was accused in Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination, the trial court exonerated him then itself.  Again in 2018, on a petition to review the exoneration, Supreme Court Bench itself exonerated him. 

He is accused of writing an apology letter to the British Government. It was customary to write a mercy petition to the Government whenever somebody was arrested.  Now, we file ‘bail application’ in the courst.  As a lawyer himself, he used to write petitions to all other jail mates for their release or for reducing the punishment.  Even Communist leader SA Dange has also written such petitions.   After his sixth petition, a team visited him in the jail and heard him.  They reported back to the Government that he was adamant and he did not regret.  Misrepresenting a routine legal procedure by some of the leaders is not good.

In spite of all the facts, some political leaders spread false information about Veer Savarkar and denigrate his great sacrifices.  There can be thousands of political differences.  This should not stand in the way of saluting the great freedom fighters. 

Let us be grateful to them. Abusing them and denigrating them would not be in the interest of the nation. 

Source: This article was published in the January 2023 edition of PreSense