The New Indian Express : Jan 03, 2020, 10:43 AM
BHOPAL: The ongoing ten-days All India Congress Seva Dal training camp in Bhopal has run into controversy over the distribution of booklets, which claim among other things that Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin Nathuram Godse had a physical relationship with former Hindu Mahasabha president Vinayak Damodar Savarkar.Two booklets titled ‘Veer Savarkar Kitne Veer’ and ‘RSS aur BJP Kuch Tathya aur Jankari’ are among the five to ten booklets that were kept for distribution among the Congress Seva Dal workers attending the national training camp which concludes on January 12 in Bhopal.The booklet mentions about incidents, questions and controversies surrounding Savarkar and RSS. Page No. 14 of the controversial booklet ‘Veer Savarkar Kitne Veer’ (How Brave was Savarkar?) mentions about the physical relationship between Sawarkar and Godse. Quoting from Dominique Lapierre and Larry Collin’s book ‘Freedom at Midnight,’ the Congress booklet says “Before Nathuram Godse adopted Bramhacharya, there is just one mention about his physical relationship. The only physical relation which Godse had before adopting Bramhacharya was a homosexual relationship with his political guru Veer Savarkar,” the booklet mentions.The same page of the booklet on Savarkar mentions about Savarkar’s book 'The Six Glorious Epochs of Indian History'. One of the questions on the concerned page reads, "Did Sawarkar motivate Hindus to rape minority women?” The answer to the question is Yes.The booklet mentions that Savarkar in his book ‘The Six Glorious Epochs of Indian History,’ while dealing with Sita’s abduction by Ravana had mentioned that kidnapping your enemy’s woman and raping her isn’t infidelity, but is instead great duty and eternal dharma.The Congress Seva Dal booklet on Savarkar also describes how Savarkar as a 12-year-old boy felt self-satisfied and joyous on damaging property in mosques and was also thrilled on the killing of Muslims by Hindus in riots.The other booklet which deals with the RSS and the BJP mentions how the RSS has always been inspired by Nazism of Adolf Hitler and Fascism of Benito Mussolini. The booklet also mentions an article in RSS-affiliated publication ‘Organiser’ against the national tricolour on the eve of country’s independence on August 14, 1947. When questioned over the controversial content in the two booklets, the Congress Seva Dal chief national organiser president Lalji Desai justified the content, saying what has been mentioned is a historical fact, which has been supported with proper references.Reacting to the development, BJP state vice president and legislator Rameshwar Sharma said, “Let the Congress say whatever it wants to say about RSS. The RSS doesn’t need a certificate from the Congress. The RSS and all those associated with the nationalist outfit thrive on the certification from the Hindu community and nationalist people across the country.”The development not only assumes significance as Madhya Pradesh is presently ruled by the Congress, but is particularly important as the RSS’s national conclave is slated in Indore from January 5-7. The meet in Indore will be graced by all top leaders of RSS (including RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat) and associated outfits.