Shiv Sena has changed its stance diametrically on the issue of Nathuram Godse. On January 30, Shiv Sena Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut said that If there was a real ‘Hindutvawadi’, then he would’ve shot Jinnah, instead of Gandhi.
#WATCH Formation of Pakistan was Jinnah’s demand. If there was a real ‘Hindutvawadi’, then he/she would’ve shot Jinnah, not Gandhi. Such an act would’ve been an act of patriotism. The world even today mourns Gandhi Ji’s death: Sanjay Raut, Shiv Sena pic.twitter.com/f0uJUvUjRB
— ANI (@ANI) January 30, 2022
On Sunday, the Shiv Sena leader was talking to the media about Nathuram Godse on MK Gandhi’s death anniversary. Sanjay Raut was asked to comment on Rahul Gandhi’s claim that a ‘Hindutvavadi’ (Godse) had killed Mahatma Gandhi. He replied, “Had anyone been a real Hindutvavadi, he/she would have shot Jinnah, why would one shoot Gandhi?”
He added, “The demand for a (separate) Pakistan, was a call given by Jinnah. If you were a real man and had guts, then you would have killed the man who spread violence through the partition. Such an act would’ve been an act of patriotism.” Talking about Gandhi he added, “To kill Gandhi, who was a saint was not right, according to me. The world even today mourns Gandhi Ji’s death”
A controversy had erupted in 2010, when the souvenir of the 84th Marathi Sahitya Sammelan had a mention of Nathuram Godse, the man who assassinated MK Gandhi on January 30, 1948. NCP leader Jitendra Awhad had demanded the photo of Ishrat Jahan, a terrorist killed by police in an encounter in Ahmedabad in 2004, to be mentioned in the souvenir instead.
The Shiv Sena mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ said, “Those who hate Nathuram are in love with Ishrat. Do they want Ishrat’s photo to be published in the souvenir instead of that of Nathuram?”. Contrary to the recent statements, the party held Godse as a leader who took pride in ‘Swadesh and Hindutva’. The editorial in Saamna further said, “He (Nathuram) always stood for united India. Is it anti-national to harbour such feelings? He was a real patriot.”
Shiv Sena had hailed Nathuram Godse as a patriot who was angered by partition and the subsequent killings of Hindus. In an interesting jibe at Sonia Gandhi, the article had claimed that ‘Pandit’ Nathuram Godse ‘had not come from Italy’ and instead was a staunch patriot.
It was only in August last year, that Sanjay Raut had taken a so-called moderate stance on Nathuram Godse questioning his act holding Gandhi responsible for partition and killing him instead of Jinnah. On Sunday, Raut seems to have reiterated this stance owing to Shiv Sena’s alliance with Congress and the NCP in Maharashtra.
