Sakshi Maharaj reveals the BJP's long standing tie to Nathuram Godse
Critics of the BJP’s kamandal campaign had
coined a slogan in the 90s to mock at the saffron Parivar: Moonh mein
Ram, bagal mein chhuri (Rama’s name on the lips but a dagger concealed
under their arms). I am revisiting the kamandal era because of
BJP MP from Unnao Sakshi Maharaj, who seems to be a classic example of a man
with dil mein Nathuram and moonh mein sorry. (Nathuram on his mind
but a sorry on his lips.)
Sakshi Maharaj, who apart from a sorry also seems to be
hopping around with one foot in his mouth, triggered a din when he called
Nathuram Godse, the man who killed Mahatma Gandhi, a nationalist. A few hours
later he retracted his statement, forced, obviously, by his bosses. Make no
mistake; the saffron-clad MP meant each and every word he said in the
Parliament today (11 December). His views on Godse reflect the ideological
beliefs that have shaped people like Maharaj and his political siblings.
Godse has always been an embodiment of the kind of politics
the lunatic fringe within the Saffron Parivar practices. He is an exemplar of
their philosophy of communal hatred. Both consciously and unconsciously this
fringe wants Godse to be accepted as a hero, not the villain of 1948, for his
role in eliminating Gandhi, who many of their supporters believe to be the
pioneer of secular politics in India .
The Saffron Parivar’s stand on Godse has been ambiguous. A
few years ago, Belgian scholar Koenraad Elst published a book titled Godse
and Gandhi (Voice of India, 183 pages). In one of his chapters he
argues that the BJP may have been born because of Godse’s act. “The total lack
of support from politicians in other parties during this ordeal (the ban on RSS
after Gandhi’s assassination by home minister Sardar Patel) convinced the RSS
rank and file of the need to start a party of their own.” He argues that Godse
was a factor in the birth of the Jansangh and its present day avatar, the BJP.
Now, this may just be a hypothesis. But several leaders from
within the Parivar have had a history of sympathising with Godse. In 1981, Ram
Jethmalini had told the Times of India (14 April) that Godse
and Gandhi shared the same political philosophy of a united India .
[NB: Yes,
indeed, and about those who combined communal hatred with slogans of Akhand
Hindustan, Gandhi had remarked: ‘There is nothing in common between me and
those who want me to oppose Pakistan
In 1970, the RSS mouthpiece Organiser had argued in an
editorial that Gandhi had incurred the wrath of the public with his
pro-Pakistan stand, insinuating that Godse represented the anger of the masses
against the Mahatma. (Both these issues were addressed in detail by the
Frontline in its edition dated 8 February, 2013)
Soon after Gandhi’s assassination, it was pointed out that
the Godse brothers were members of the RSS. But the Sangh denied this saying
Nathuram had left the outfit in 1933. This was, however, contested by
Nathuram’s younger brother Gopal, who was a co-conspirator in the Mahatma’s
assassination. In his blog, well-known scholar and historian Vinay Lal says,
Whether Godse formally remained a member of the RSS is much less important than
the fact that though the Hindu Mahasabha and the RSS had some ideological
differences, both organizations were united in their extreme hostility to
Gandhi as well as to Muslims. (Read more)
The BJP has, however, always denied its links with Godse or
the ideology that inspired him. Its leaders have argued that the RSS had just
‘minor’ differences with the Mahatma and they were not too serious. The
end result of this conflict between ideology and political pragmatism is the
doublespeak by saffron-clad leaders like Sakshi Maharaj. Maharajs and Sadhvis, and also Babas, have no place in
politics. They are by definition people who renounce the world to pursue their
faith and to lead life as ascetics. But still they manage to enter the
Parliament because they play a well-defined role for the BJP in politics.
By flaunting men and women in saffron robes, the BJP sends out a strong message to its Hindutva votaries that it is their only representative. These saffron mannequins in the BJP’s godown are, thus, prisoners of their defined role of the champions of Hindutva and opponents of secularism, the credo that defined Godse’s philosophy. Nathuram Godse is their ideological predecessors. No wonder, they can’t resist the temptation of singing paeans to him.
By flaunting men and women in saffron robes, the BJP sends out a strong message to its Hindutva votaries that it is their only representative. These saffron mannequins in the BJP’s godown are, thus, prisoners of their defined role of the champions of Hindutva and opponents of secularism, the credo that defined Godse’s philosophy. Nathuram Godse is their ideological predecessors. No wonder, they can’t resist the temptation of singing paeans to him.
The Assassination of Mahatma Gandhi: Inquiry Commission Report (1969)
The music of humanity - On the 66th anniversary of Gandhi's assassination
The music of humanity - On the 66th anniversary of Gandhi's assassination
The Assassination of Gandhi
Hindutva's Foreign Tie-up in the 1930s
Shamsul Islam: Narendra Modi On Sardar Patel: Putting Goebbels To Shame
Hitler's annihilation of the Romanis: “I as a German prefer much more to see India under British Government than under any other...I must not connect the fate of the German people with these so-called ‘oppressed nations’ who are clearly of racial inferiority” (Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf, German edition, p. 747)
