New Delhi: Controversy erupted today when Union Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said at a book launch event that it was Mahatma Gandhi who advised Veer Savarkar to apologize to the British government. There are some people who are bent on proving freedom fighter Veer Savarkar as a coward. Naturally, the minister’s statement did not go down well with these people.
Zee News editor-in-chief Sudhir Choudhary on Wednesday (October 13) discussed the truth behind Savarkar’s mercy petitions he wrote to the British government while serving his sentence of ‘Kala Pani’.
There are some people who dislike Savarkar and do not want to accept his friendship with Gandhi. They should know that Gandhi had written an article in support of Savarkar and also appealed to the British for his release.
Veer Savarkar sent a total of 6 mercy petitions to the British government during the sentence of ‘Kala Pani’, out of which five petitions were sent between 1911 and 1919, while one petition was sent in 1920 on the suggestion of Mahatma Gandhi. But some argue that when Mahatma Gandhi came to India from South Africa in the year 1915, how did he advise Veer Savarkar to apologize.
Veer Savarkar was first arrested in 1909 in London. One of the charges leveled against Savarkar was abetment to the murder of Nashik Collector Jackson. He was also accused of trying to create a war-like situation by instigating a rebellion against the British government. This proves that the British government of that time considered him as their biggest enemy and he was one of the biggest revolutionaries of India.
After his arrest, he was sent to the Cellular Jail in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the year 1911, which was then also known as Kala Pani Jail. During this sentence, Veer Savarkar was subjected to terrible torture, after which he wrote the first letter to the British government on 30 August 1911 and requested the British to forgive his sentence. But after 3 days his petition was rejected.
After this, on 14 November 1913, he filed another petition in which he assured not to revolt against the British government. However, historians differ on whether this letter should be considered a mere apology or a war tactic because Savarkar knew that a revolution could not be brought about by being imprisoned and it was important for him to get out.
He served a terrible sentence for 10 years and during this period sent a total of six mercy petitions to the government in 1911, 1913, 1914, 1915, 1918 and 1920.
In 1919, after World War I, Britain’s King George V issued an edict that pardoned all political prisoners in prisons. It was a gift to the people of India as many leaders including Mahatma Gandhi took an oath of allegiance to the British during the war.
Under this order, many prisoners were also released from the Cellular Jail in Andaman, but the British government did not forgive Vinayak Savarkar and his elder brother Ganesh Damodar Savarkar.
After this Savarkar’s younger brother Narayan Rao Savarkar wrote a letter to Mahatma Gandhi on 18 January 1920, which is mentioned by Vikram Sampath in his book ‘Savarkar: Echoes from a Forgotten Past’.
He sought advice and help from Gandhi in that situation. He wrote that Savarkar was serving a sentence for about 10 years and his health had suffered a lot and his weight had come down to 45 kg.
A week later, Mahatma Gandhi replied to the letter on 25 January 1920. He writes, “I have received your letter. It is difficult to give any advice in this matter. But I will give you a suggestion that you prepare a detailed petition to prove Vinayak Savarkar as a political prisoner.” Gandhi said that this can get public support.
It was only after Mahatma Gandhi’s suggestion that Veer Savarkar sent his sixth and last mercy petition to the British government, which was later rejected like the rest of the petitions.
Gandhi also wrote an article in Young India newspaper on 26 May 2020 titled “Savarkar Brothers” for his release.
Veer Savarkar spent a total of 15 years in jail, out of which he spent 10 years in Kala Pani, considered the most dreaded prison. Apart from this, he was also under house arrest in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra for 13 years.
A freedom fighter who spent almost 28 years of his life in such dreadful condition for the freedom of the country – can his patriotism be doubted? But there are some people in the country who are used to doing politics on it.
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