Uddhav from Shiv Sena takes offence to Rahul Gandhi’s Savarkar comment and said, ‘Won’t tolerate Savarkar’s insult’
Uddhav Thackeray asks Rahul Gandhi ‘not to get provoked’ and on Sunday said he would not tolerate any insult to Savarkar, a day after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said he would not apologise since he is not Savarkar, but a Gandhi.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray told Rahul Gandhi that he considers Hindutva ideologue V D Savarkar as his idol and asked the Congress leader to refrain from insulting him.
“Savarkar suffered unimaginable torture in the Andaman cellular jail for 14 years. We can only read the sufferings. It is a form of sacrifice,” he added.
Uddhav Thackeray, whose Sena faction is an ally of Congress and the NCP in the state, however, urged Rahul Gandhi to not get provoked and to come together to “save India’s democracy”.
Who was Vinayak Damodar Savarkar?
Vinayak Damodar Savarkar was an Indian politician, activist, and writer. He was a leading figure in the Hindu Mahasabha. The Hindu Mahasabha supported the far-right ideology of Hindutva (“Hinduness”) and became a fierce opponent of the secular nationalism espoused by Congress. In 1948, Savarkar was charged as a co-conspirator in the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi; however, he was acquitted by the court for lack of evidence.
In 1910, Savarkar was arrested and ordered to be extradited to India for his connections with the revolutionary group India House. Savarkar was sentenced to life terms of imprisonment totalling fifty years and was moved to the Cellular Jail in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. He was released in 1924 by British officials after he wrote a series of mercy petitions to the British. He stopped any criticism of the British regime after he was released from jail.
By 1939, Savarkar committed an alliance with the Muslim League in 1939 after both were decimated by the Indian National Congress. He also supported the two-nation theory and the Partition of India.