Prime accused in the 2008 Malegaon bomb blasts and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate from Bhopal for the 2019 general elections, Pragya Singh Thakur was once again embroiled in controversy when she hailed Mahatma Gandhi’s killer Nathuram Godse as a patriot.
“Nathuram Godse was a ‘deshbhakt’ (patriot), he is and will remain a ‘deshbhakt’. Those calling him a terrorist should instead look at themselves. They will be given a befitting reply in this election,” she said Thursday.
The BJP condemned Thakur’s insensitive comments, forcing her to issue a public apology.
“We completely disagree with her statement with regard to Mahatma Gandhi. We strongly condemn this statement. The party will seek clarification from her as to why she gave this. It would be proper for her to seek and tender a public apology for her objectionable statement,” BJP spokesperson GVL Narasimha Rao said in a statement.
Besides creating unnecessary controversy, Thakur’s remarks have once again brought the story of Gandhi’s assassination to the forefront of India’s political discourse.
While everyone is familiar with the when and how of Gandhi’s murder, many still remain unaware of how Godse was caught.
It was thanks to the heroics of an Odia gardener, Raghunath Nayak, that the escaping Godse was pinned down and arrested.
Hailing from the Jaguleipada village in Kendrapara district of Odisha, Nayak worked as a gardener at Birla House. Godse tried to run from the scene after firing three bullets at Gandhi from point blank range. Nayak ran after the assassin, grappled with him and then pinned him down before Godse was arrested.
Although history books seldom mention Nayak’s heroic feat, residents of Jaguleipada still pay tribute to him every year January 30, Gandhi’s death anniversary.
“Had Raghu succeeded in saving Gandhi, modern Indian history would have taken a different turn,” said Kailash Chandra Sahu, headmaster at Jay Malavya Nodal School in the village where Herman automobile giants Daimler and Chrysler have installed busts of both Gandhi and Nayak .
“Raghunath Nayak had remained unnoticed in his lifetime. He also went unsung after his death on August 13, 1983. We, the local residents, however, pay our tributes to Nayak, which he richly deserved,” Sahu added.
PNN