Savarkar kin seeks access to 'book' cited by Rahul while making 'defamatory' remarks

Pune, May 28 (PTI) A grandnephew of V D Savarkar on Wednesday moved an application before a Pune court seeking access to a 'book' cited by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi while making alleged defamatory remarks against the Hindutva ideologue during a speech in London.

The applicant, Satyaki Savarkar, argued Rahul Gandhi's remarks were fictitious and not based on any book written by the freedom fighter.

Interestingly, defence lawyer Milind Pawar, representing the Congress MP, has moved a separate application seeking the 'maternal lineage' of Satyaki Savarkar.

The complainant's mother, late Himani Ashok Savarkar, belonged to the family of Nathuram Godse, the assassin of Mahatma Gandhi. Her father's name was Gopal Godse, who was the brother of Nathuram Godse, said the plea.

Satyaki Savarkar had filed a defamation complaint against Rahul Gandhi in a Pune court citing his his speech in London in March 2023.

According to the complaint, the Congress MP claimed in his speech that V D Savarkar had written in a "book" that "he and five to six of his friends once beat up a Muslim man and that he (Savarkar) felt happy".

V D Savarkar never wrote any such thing anywhere and called the remarks by Gandhi as "fictitious, false, and malicious", it said.

"The accused (Gandhi) had sought a book named 'Hindutva' written by Savarkar. We furnished the said book under protest earlier," said the application submitted by Satyaki Savarkar.

The case is already posted for recording of plea of the accused since January 10, 2025. However, the accused is not recording his plea on one pretext or another and adopting delaying tactics, he said.

"We have now sought directions from the court to the accused (Rahul Gandhi) to produce the book allegedly written by V D Savarkar, which was cited by the accused while making defamatory remarks in London," said advocate Sangram Kolhatkar, who represents Satyaki Savarkar.

The book in question is necessary for a fair trial in the case, said Kolhatkar.

Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi's lawyer Pawar moved an application before the court seeking 'maternal lineage' of Satyaki Savarkar.

"While filing the case, complainant Satyaki Savarkar submitted his paternal lineage to the court, establishing his relation to Savarkar, highlighting the latter's contributions to freedom struggle.

"Satyaki Savarkar is the son of late Ashok Narayanrao Savarkar and late Himani Ashok Savarkar. While his paternal ancestry was submitted to the court, his maternal ancestry was not mentioned in the complaint, although it is considered crucial for the hearing. Hence, we have sought that the maternal lineage of Satyaki Savakar be produced in court," said Pawar.

If Satyaki Savarkar fails to submit his maternal lineage from the Godse family, it has been requested that the Vishrambaug police station in Pune be directed to investigate the detailed ancestry of the late Himani Ashok Savarkar and submit a report to the court, he said. PTI SPK RSY