Time for Atonement: Veer Savarkar and the Stolen Legacy of a Patriot

As India reassesses its history, justice demands acknowledging Savarkar’s contributions to the freedom struggle and the injustices he endured over Gandhi’s assassination.

On February 10, 1949, a special court exonerated Vinayak Damodar Savarkar of any involvement in the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi. Yet, history has not been as kind. The mere inclusion of his name in the case, despite a lack of evidence, remains a travesty of justice, one that cast a long shadow over his political career and deprived India of an influential voice.

The Gandhi assassination trial, which began on May 27, 1948, and lasted eight months, resulted in the sentencing of nine individuals. Nathuram Godse and Narayan Apte were sentenced to death, four others received life imprisonment, one was given a seven-year term, and another was acquitted due to lack of evidence. The only person who managed to evade legal repercussions was Digambar Badge, who turned approver. Savarkar’s arrest and subsequent acquittal should have been the end of the matter. However, his political marginalization continued well beyond the trial.

Dr. Pankaj Phadnis, a Savarkarite, has argued before the Supreme Court that the trial was, in fact, a ‘mistrial.’ He contends that Savarkar was falsely implicated in a political conspiracy aimed at sidelining him. The timing of his arrest and the lack of substantial evidence to prove his involvement in the plot lend some weight to this argument. Savarkar was a vocal critic of what he termed “distorted secularism,” advocating for equal treatment of majority and minority communities. He also opposed the transfer of Rs. 55 crores to Pakistan, warning that it would be used against India. His vision for an assertive India included sending 10,000 young men to the United States for military training and another 10,000 to develop a scientific temperament—an agenda that, if realized, could have reshaped India’s strategic landscape.

The aftermath of his acquittal was no less punitive. He was arrested again in 1949 and released only after agreeing not to contest the 1952 elections. A man whose ideological clarity and vision could have contributed significantly to Indian politics was silenced, leaving a vacuum that was never quite filled. He passed away in 1966, never again holding an electoral post.

The assassination of Gandhi was a carefully plotted act, orchestrated by a motley group of men, each with their own grievances and motivations. Nathuram Godse, a former editor of the Hindu Rashtra, was transformed from a mild-mannered writer into a radical Hindu nationalist after his early interactions with Savarkar in Ratnagiri. Narayan Apte, his close associate, was an ex-Indian Air Force officer who shared Godse’s ideological fervour.

Other figures involved included Vishnu Karkare, who dedicated himself to aiding Hindu-Sikh refugees in Ahmednagar, and Gopal Godse, Nathuram’s younger brother, who was swept up in his brother’s radicalism. Digambar Badge, an arms dealer, was initially a co-conspirator but later turned approver, testifying against the others. Shankar Kistya, Badge’s servant, had little understanding of the plot but was caught in its web. Madanlal Pahwa, a refugee from West Punjab, had seen Muslim atrocities firsthand, while Dr. Sadashiv Parchure played a key role in procuring the Beretta pistol that fired the fatal shots.

The conspiracy took shape as Gandhi’s perceived ‘Muslim appeasement’ policies enraged the plotters. His fast to pressure the Indian government into transferring Rs. 55 crores to Pakistan was the final straw. On January 20, 1948, an initial assassination attempt at Birla House failed. Pahwa detonated a bomb to create chaos, but the others were unable to execute their plan in the ensuing melee. The police’s inefficiencies allowed them to escape and regroup.

On January 30, they struck again. Gandhi, as was his custom, had no security checks for visitors. Godse entered first, followed later by Apte and Karkare. As Gandhi walked towards his evening prayer meeting, Godse stepped forward, folded his hands in greeting, and fired three shots. Gandhi collapsed. Witnesses were divided on whether he uttered his famous last words, “Hey Ram.” What is undisputed is that Godse raised his hands and called for the police, eager to prove that his act was deliberate, rational and ideological.

The police, under Bombay’s Chief Minister Morarji Desai and Police Chief Jamshed Nagarvala, moved swiftly. Savarkar’s house was raided, and thousands of letters and documents were seized, but no evidence directly linked him to the assassination. However, Badge’s testimony that he overheard Savarkar telling Godse and Apte, “Yashasvi houn ya” (Come back victorious), became the cornerstone of the prosecution’s case against him. Gopal Godse, in later interviews, revealed that Badge had been tortured into naming Savarkar.

Despite the shaky foundation of the case, Savarkar was dragged through the legal process. In Judge Atmacharan’s verdict on February 10, 1949, Savarkar was acquitted due to lack of evidence. Godse and Apte were sentenced to death, while others received varying degrees of imprisonment. The only person visibly distressed by the verdict was Badge, the betrayer.

Justice G.D. Khosla, one of India’s most respected jurists, later remarked that had the trial been decided by a jury, Godse might have been found not guilty, given the public sentiment at the time. The real injustice, however, was not just the trial but the post-acquittal punishment of Savarkar, when his political career was deliberately stifled - a fate undeserving for a man of his ideological stature.

As India reassesses its history, it is imperative that a more balanced narrative on Savarkar emerges. He was a revolutionary, a thinker and a nationalist whose contributions to India’s freedom struggle remain overshadowed by the controversy surrounding his alleged involvement in Gandhi’s assassination.

A nation’s moral fabric is not just defined by its heroes but also by how it treats those whose legacies have been unfairly tarnished. In Savarkar’s case, the scales of justice have remained unbalanced for too long.

(The author is a motivational public speaker. Views personal.)