Right-wing ideologue Vinayak Damodar Savarkar had filed 10 mercy petitions with the then British Government seeking reduction of his sentence, his grandnephew Satyaki Savarkar told a special MP/MLA court in Pune, on Monday June 15. Mercy petitions sent to the British colonial government while he was in prison did not diminish the 'Veer' (brave) title conferred on Savarkar by the public, he contended.
He further stated that there were other freedom fighters and revolutionaries who refused to file clemency petitions before the British. Satyaki made this disclosure in his cross-examination before Special Judge Amol Shinde, who is presently dealing with the criminal defamation case he has filed against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for allegedly defaming his grand uncle by delivering a speech in London.
The statement was made as part of a defamation case filed by Savarkar's grandnephew, Satyaki Savarkar, against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.During the June 15 hearing, Gandhi’s lawyer, advocate Milind Pawar, questioned Satyaki about why Savarkar is called 'Veer' (brave). Pawar referred to the series of mercy petitions Savarkar addressed to the British authorities while he was imprisoned during colonial rule.
Satyaki replied that official records from the British period, as well as publications of the expatriate revolutionary group Gadar organisation, show that Savarkar was referred to as 'Veer' even while he was in jail in the Andaman Islands.He accepted that Savarkar filed ten mercy petitions seeking a reduction of his sentence but denied that it is therefore contradictory to call someone who filed such petitions 'Veer'.
Satyaki added that titles like 'Veer', 'Swatantryaveer', 'Mahatma' or 'Netaji' are labels that people give to those they consider to have done extraordinary work, and are not formal legal designations.When questioned about other revolutionary figures such as Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt, who did not seek such concessions from the British government, Satyaki replied he could not say whether that was the reason they were executed.
According to court records, Satyaki said,“I was unaware that Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt had petitioned the British government, demanding to be treated as prisoners of war and refusing any concessions or acts of leniency. It is true to say that Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt remained steadfast in their ideology and principles until the very end. The witness himself states that, much like Savarkar, they remained unyielding to the last."
Advocate Pawar also read out portions of a 1913 mercy petition in which Savarkar described the harsh prison conditions, humbly sought relief, and requested either transfer to an Indian jail or release on conditions.
In that mercy petition, Savarkar said he would follow a constitutional path and remain loyal to the British government if released. Rahul Gandhi's counsel cited this wording to challenge Satyaki’s portrayal of Savarkar as a brave revolutionary.
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