In the recent hullaballoo about the opening of the new Parliament building on V.D. Savarkar’s 140th birthday on May 28, another anniversary went unnoticed. May 2023 was the centenary of the publication of Savarkar’s Essentials of Hindutva. The foundational text was forgotten by Hindutva-vadis. This should not come as a surprise to anyone who follows contemporary politics in India. For Hindutva-vadis, the idea of reclaiming Savarkar as a hero is more important than any of his writings.
How Savarkar became a hero
This is not the first time that Savarkar has been at the centre of hagiographical celebrations. In 1924, a reporter for The Times of India observed that India was experiencing “an orgy of hero worship.” This was a period in which revolutionaries were publicly fêted for their bravery and valour. The reporter noted that it was Savarkar who received the greatest public attention. The Indian hero was finally released from prison and the moniker “veer” was attached to his name for the first time: Veer Savarkar was born.
For the second half of the 20th century Savarkar largely remained on the margins of public culture in India following M.K. Gandhi’s murder trial, in which Savarkar was tried as a co-conspirator and eventually released. There is no doubt that Savarkar has been resurrected over the past decade with the patronage of the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Sangh Parivar. He is a ghost father no more. It would be fair to say that his name has risen like the phoenix in recent years, but it is the bulbul that he is associated with for now, thanks to his supporters who imagine the songbird as his ride in the magical travels across the seas.
In his writings Savarkar often compared himself to Ramchandra, whom he classified as the greatest hero in Hindu history, so it is no surprise that a recent proclamation by politicians in Maharashtra declared Savarkar a god. This is an important moment.
Savarkar’s life-story is technically off limits to criticism as per Section 295A of the Indian Constitution that punishes individuals accused of hurting the “religious feelings of any class of citizens of India.” Anyone who speaks or writes about Savarkar now risks accusations of blasphemy by those afflicted with Hindu fragility.
Limited analysis
Yet Indians across the political spectrum can’t stop talking and writing about Savarkar. Gone are the days when one could read a newspaper or watch the news without having to think about Savarkar. Legions of India’s Twitterati contribute to #Savarkar with endless soundbites and memes. One thing is certain when it comes to Savarkar: the quantity of mentions is no guarantee of the quality of analysis. Hindutva-vadis, Congress-wallahs, and Communists alike, can’t seem to move beyond a handful of talking points about Savarkar. Was he “veer” or not? Did he beg for mercy or not? Was he a Nazi sympathiser or not? Did he support Dalits or not? Was he responsible for the murder of Gandhi or not?
The reality for all critics of Hindutva is that Savarkar is here to stay for now. If the BJP wins national elections in 2024, Savarkar’s image and name will likely proliferate to the point that every time you open your wallet, you will have to see his picture on the currency note you are holding. Whether anyone will be interested in reading Savarkar’s writings remains unknown. Supporters and critics will likely default to repeating the mantra that I have heard so often, “We already know what he had to say.”
However, to counter dominant narratives by and about Savarkar requires reading them first. It is possible to shift public discussions by focusing on Savarkar’s claims that Hindus were violent colonisers of India since antiquity, that Hindu history could be written without evidence, that all Hindus have polluted blood due to their sexual urges, that Hindus need to be in a permanent civil war against Muslims and Christians, and that Hindus should sometimes brutally kill other Hindus, especially those who are effeminate or advocate ahimsa…
This story was originally published in thehindu.com. Read the full story here