2 weeks ago
Savarkar Relative Says Godse Was Active RSS Worker in Court
Satyaki Savarkar is taking Rahul Gandhi to court over comments about V.D. Savarkar.
During questioning, Satyaki said Nathuram Godse and his brother Gopal were active workers of the RSS.
Nathuram Godse was the man who killed Mahatma Gandhi.
Satyaki also said Nathuram worked with the Hindu Mahasabha.
Congress leaders said this challenges the RSS’s long-standing position about Godse.
During his trial, Godse said he had left the RSS and joined the Hindu Mahasabha.
Historian Dhirendra K. Jha wrote that the timing of this change remains disputed.
The statement was testimony in a defamation case, not a separate court ruling about the RSS.
Satyaki Savarkar testified that Nathuram and Gopal Godse were active workers of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
He also said Nathuram Godse was a worker of the Hindu Mahasabha.
The statement was made during cross-examination in Savarkar’s defamation complaint against Rahul Gandhi.
Congress leaders urged the RSS to clarify its historical position on the Godse brothers’ affiliation.
Historical accounts differ over whether Nathuram Godse formally left the RSS before joining the Hindu Mahasabha.
- Who
- Satyaki Savarkar, Rahul Gandhi, Nathuram and Gopal Godse, the RSS, and Congress leaders are central to the account.
- What
- Satyaki Savarkar testified that Nathuram and Gopal Godse were active RSS workers and that Nathuram also worked with the Hindu Mahasabha.
- Where
- The testimony was given during proceedings before a magistrate in Pune; the alleged speech by Rahul Gandhi took place in London.
- When
- The testimony was given on Monday; Congress demanded clarification on Tuesday, and Satyaki filed the complaint in 2023.
- Why
- The testimony arose during cross-examination in Satyaki Savarkar’s defamation complaint over Rahul Gandhi’s comments about V.D. Savarkar.
Congress challenges the RSS’s historical position
Godse’s claimed departure and disputed history
Godse’s RSS affiliation
Congress challenges the RSS’s historical position
Satyaki Savarkar testified that Nathuram and Gopal Godse were active RSS workers. Congress leaders said this conflicts with what they described as the RSS’s long-standing denial of a connection.
Godse’s claimed departure and disputed history
The articles report that Nathuram Godse said during his trial that he had left the RSS and joined the Hindu Mahasabha.
Historical evidence
Congress challenges the RSS’s historical position
Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant cited Satyaki’s testimony and referred to a 1948 letter from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel describing celebrations and sweet distribution after Gandhi’s death by people associated with the RSS, as presented in the article.
Godse’s claimed departure and disputed history
Historian Dhirendra K. Jha wrote that the date of Godse’s formal joining of the Hindu Mahasabha remains unresolved and that no document or testimony conclusively establishes it.
Key facts
- Witness
- Satyaki Savarkar
- Court location
- Pune
- Testimony
- Satyaki said Nathuram and Gopal Godse were active workers of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
- Additional affiliation
- Satyaki said Nathuram Godse was also a worker of the Hindu Mahasabha.
- Case
- A defamation complaint filed by Satyaki Savarkar against Rahul Gandhi in 2023.
- Congress demand
- Congress leaders called on the RSS to clarify its historical position on the Godse brothers.
- Historical dispute
- Godse said during his trial that he had left the RSS, while historian Dhirendra K. Jha said the date of his formal joining of the Hindu Mahasabha remains unresolved.
Quotes
Satyaki Savarkar
Grandson of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, involved in a defamation case
“Truth has a strange way of coming to light, the RSS has spent a little over 78 years disowning Godse, only for their guru Savarkar's grand‑nephew to deliver a stinging slap in the Sangh's face by telling a Pune court that Godse, Gandhi Ji's murderer, was indeed an RSS member.”
telegraphindia.com
“It is true that my grandfather Gopal Godse and Nathuram Godse were active workers of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.”
telegraphindia.com
rediff.com
Sources
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