May 28, the 148th day of the year, marks the observance of the birth anniversary of over-discussed Vinayak Damodar Savarkar in the history of India. The day comes with so many claims and disclaims about him. Some of them are accepted and other some are denied. Every year, in public domain, almost same questions are debated.
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| Veer Savarkar (PC - Savarkar.org) |
Mercy petition filed by him when he was in ‘Kaalapani’, his connection with Gandhi’s assassination and his role in Indian freedom struggle are on the top. These questions are answered with same login but the question-askers come with the same again and again without any appropriate reason, why? It has been in vogue.
On his 140th birth anniversary, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, although, hailed him saying “Veer Savarkar’s personality exuded strength and magnanimity. His fearless and self-respecting nature could not tolerate the mindset of slavery at all,” but the coincidence with the inauguration of new Parliament building dragged him again with the same questions.
With these questions, ‘May 28’ has become a controversial day again, but the trend this year has been totally opposite. No ideologue and members of ‘Sangh pariwar’ showed eager to answer these repeated and irritating questions.
The unanswerability indicated a new and different trend to establish right wing leaders and thought, that is, establishing them by films, books, documentaries and long commentaries.
The release of fiIm Savarkar’s teaser on this day, directed by Randeep Hooda, followed by the films ‘Narendra Modi’, ‘The Kerala Story’, ‘The Kashmir Files’, ‘The West Bengal Diaries’, etc. is the first clue of this strategy.
Undoubtedly this strategy has always been in fashion, specially, for the promotion and expansion of yet-believed-true thought because truth is rarely accepted in public sphere, a volunteer of sangh pariwar casually said, adding we have tried hard to give our clarification but now there is no need of clarification. The only need is to say what our ideas are, and, we think without it we are nothing!
It was not shocking for me after listening to him because I grew up in the ‘sanskar’ of RSS-run school ‘Saraswati Shishu Mandir’ where I had been studying and listening about Savarkar, Hedgewar, Guruji and its other ideologues.
It shaped my mind as per its ‘sanskar’, but never made me orthodox person because the ‘Vidya Bharati’ that regulates these schools has always been appreciating the study of English, modern math and modern science along with Vedic match, Sanskrit and Hindi. In my opinion, studying Hindi and Sanskrit in the Sangh schools is only synonymous to the study of languages as a communication and connecting language.
Ideologically, Sangh, Right group in India, tries to find ‘prosperity and happiness’ in the Vedic age and wants to revive it conjugating with modernity. I found no fault in Sangh’s attempt except some questionable stuff. The ‘left’ in India and worldwide also endeavours for the same in the future going against the dogma of middle way. Marx, Engels, Lenin, Stalin, Mao and in India, Charu, MN Roy and so many are icons for the communist. All these ideologies and ideas set a theme behind any society to run it smoothly.
The only difference is that people at large do not know about the icons of right/Sangh in India because these heroes have not been part of any syllabus, as volunteers claim. Their ideas have not been debated for social change. They have been neglected saying they are outdated. Many who read Deendayal Upadhyay appreciate his ‘Integral Humanism’ and say that it holds potential for social welfare and empowerment like any other theories in the world. Hence, we need to study him. We need to analyse him like we explain Marx’s socialism and communism.
We also need to study Savarkar in depth and try to understand the context of his all activities and writings. What his book Hindutva says and why the thought and ideas in this book have been modified today? How ideology differs with philosophy that gives answers of several questions.
Let do your mind free and study Savarkar not only to understand him but also to know the steps taken by the ruling party!
