He was known as ‘VEER’ since as an event in his childhood in which he resisted the attack of a violent Muslim group in his village and fought bravely. When he was 15, he organized a youth organization to advocate nationalist ideas. While pursuing his B.A from Fergusson College in Pune, he was inspired by Lokmanya Tilak’s announcement to boycott British Clothes. After completing his degree, nationalist activist Shyamji Krishna Varma helped him to go to England to study law, on a scholarship.
After joining Gray’s Inn college in London Savarkar took accommodation at India House. Organized by Pandit Shyamji, India House was a thriving center for student political activities. the Savarkaron founded the FreeIndia Society to help organize fellow Indians students to fight for complete independence revolution, saying that – “We must stop complaining about this British officer, this law. There would be no end to that. Our movement must not be limited to being against any particular law, but it must be for acquiring the authority to make laws itself. In other words, we want absolute independence.”
Savarkar wrote the book, History of the War of Indian Independence. He analyzed the circumstances of the 1857 uprising and assailed British rule in India as unjust and oppressive. It was via this book that Savarkar became one of the first writers to allude the uprising as India’s ‘First War of Independence”. This book was banned throughout the British Empire but was widely disseminated among youths through smuggling. It was widely popular and inspired many to stand against the Britishers. Savarkar came in touch with a veteran of the Russian Revolution of 1905 which impacted him the knowledge of bomb-making. Savarkar had printed and circulated a manual among his friends on bomb-making and other methods of guerrilla warfare.
Savarkar defended intenselyMadan Lal Dhingra who assassinated Sir William Hutt Curzon Wyllie. He was executed but was defended through the process by Savarkar by all possible means. In India, Ganesh Savarkar had organized an armed revolt against the Morley-Minto reforms of 1909 and Damodar Savarkar was implicated by Britishers in this controversy. He was arrested and bought to India for trial. Arriving in Bombay (Mumbai), Savarkar was taken to Yervada Central Jail in Pune. Following a trial, Savarkar, aged 28, was convicted and sentenced to 50-year imprisonment and transported on 4 July 1911 to the infamous Cellular Jail in Andaman Nicobar Islands. in the Cellular Jail Savarkar used to write some thoughts for Independence on the walls so that the next person who will come in that jail will read it and get inspired, as Savarkar was shifted every day to a new jail or a room. In these 50 years, he used to remove 23 liters of oil as a form of punishment every day. In this period, he wrote many songs on Independence like “Ne mazashi ne parat matrubhumila, sagara pran talmala (Take me back to my motherland, for that the sea’s heart is eager)”.
He also attempted to escape the Cellular Jail by Swimming in the ocean, He went to France and sent a bomb to India for testing it.
After mercy petitions and pressure from Indian National Congress, he was shifted to Yerwada Jail in 1923 and was released in 1924 under the strict conditions of not participating in politics for 5 years and barring to Leave Ratnagiri district. Through he was not allowed in politics and leave Ratnagiri, he decided to work on the abolishment of untouchability in Ratnagiri. He gained 100 percent success in it within 2 years. Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar who was the editor of the ‘Janta’, a monthly magazine, compared his work to Lord Buddha.
Not one but eight works of Savarkar were banned by the British government. The list includes Mazzini- his biography in Marathi, Indian War of Independence 1857, drama Usshaap, Shradddhanand- magazine by his brother that carried his articles and his biography by GP Parchure, among others. In 1964, Savarkar felt his goal of Independent India is achieved and it was time to leave. So he declared his wish to attain Samadhi and started a hunger strikeon February 1, 1966, and passed away on February 26, 1966. I salute this kind of Freedom Fighters. Jay Hind, Jay Maharashtra.
Fact: Before Lal Bahadur Shastri go to Tashkent, Russia Savarkar sent eleven total letters to him saying – “There is a danger to your life so, don’t go to Tashkent for the treaty. You should sign the treaty in India or Pakistan. It is a plan to kill you.”
Comments
Post a Comment