Who killed Gandhi

 Who killed Gandhi and why?

On January 30 1948 Mr. M.k. Gandhi was assassinated by Nathuram Godse,

a Hindu nationalist. Godse's motives were multifaceted, including his

belief that Gandhi showed leniency towards Pakistan during the Partition

of India. Additionally Godse opposed Gandhi's efforts to foster unity

between Hindus and Muslims. Perceived Gandhi's commitment to

nonviolence as a vulnerability.

During his trial Godse explained that he took Gandhi's life because he felt

betrayed by his actions towards the Hindu community. It is noteworthy

that Godse acknowledged being influenced by the writings of Hindu

thinkers like Veer Vinayak Damodar Savarkar.

The assassination of Gandhi had an impact on Indian history. The nation

was left in shock. A period of unrest and violence ensued. Globally

Gandhi's death reverberated deeply because he epitomized peace and

nonviolence as a symbol.

Within a short span of 3 hours after Gandhi's demise every Indian became

aware of Godses complete background information, including his caste as a Chitpavan Brahmin. As a result Gandhi's supporters took actions burning alive anyone with the surname Godse and even wiping out entire villages of Chitpavan Brahmins.

A total of 8 individuals were arrested in connection with Gandhi's murder.

The arrested individuals were Nathuram Vinayak Godse, Veer Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, Narayan Apte, Shankar Kistayya, Dattatraya Parchure, Vishnu Karkare, Madanlal Pahwa and Gopal Godse.

The trial commenced on May 27 1948 and spanned eight months before

Justice Atma Charan delivered the verdict on February 10 1949. The

prosecution called upon 149 witnesses while the defense chose not to present any. The court found all defendants, except one as charged.

Eight men were convicted for their involvement in the murder conspiracy

while others were convicted for violating the Explosive Substances Act. Savarkar was. Released. Nathuram Godse and Narayan Apte were sentenced to death by hanging while the remaining six, including Gopal Godse (Godse's brother) received life imprisonment. Pahwa, Godse and Karkare were released from prison in October 1964.

With the exception of Godse all those who were found filed appeals,

against their convictions and sentences. While Godse accepted his death sentence he appealed the court ruling that found him guilty of conspiracy. Godse claimed, during his appeal to the High Court, that there was no conspiracy. He asserted that he was solely responsible for the assassination of Gandhi and witnesses confirmed that they saw only him commit the act. Additionally he believed that all co accused

were innocent and should be set free.

After the arrest of Gopla Godse he happened to encounter Devdas

Gandhi, who was the editor of Hindustan Times and the son of Mahatma Gandhi. This encounter was described by Gopal Godse, Nathurams brother and co conspirator in his book Gandhi's Murder And After. According to Gopal Godse Devdas had come to the police station in Parliament Street with expectations of finding a terrifying and bloodthirsty monster, devoid of any politeness.

However Nathurams calm demeanor and clear words contradicted Devdas

assumptions. It is worth noting that we cannot confirm if this was indeed the case. Nathuram introduces himself to Devdas as Nathuram Vinayak Godse, the editor of a newspaper called Hindu Rashtra.

He admits that he was present at the time of Gandhi's murder and

acknowledges that he is responsible for the tragedy that has befallen Devdas and his family. Nathuram assures Devdas that his actions were not driven by hatred, grudge or any ill intention towards him.

In response to Nathurams admission Devdas asks a question: "Then why

did you do it?"

Nathuram argues that the motive behind his actions was purely political

without any agenda. However he is denied the opportunity to explain his case by the police. In court Nathuram attempts to justify himself through a statement. Unfortunately it is banned by the court.

Gopal Godse includes Nathurams will as an annexure in his book, where

the final line states that if the ban on his court statement is lifted by the government he authorizes its publication.

So what does this statement contain? In it Godse makes the following

points:

He expresses his respect for Gandhi. Emphasizes that he closely studied

the works and speeches of both Veer Savarkar and Gandhi. According to him these two ideologies had an influence on shaping the thoughts and actions of Indian people over the past thirty years or so more than any other factor. Godses opinion about Gandhi is that after enduring accumulating provocation for thirty two years it was Gandhi's pro Muslim fast that pushed him to the conclusion that Gandhi's existence needed to be ended promptly.

He acknowledges Gandhi's efforts, in South Africa, in protecting the rights and well being of the Indian community there. However upon his return to India he experienced a shift, in his perspective adopting a

mindset in which he believed that only he could determine what was

morally correct or incorrect.

"If the nation desired his leadership it had to acknowledge his authority;

otherwise he would distance himself from the Congress and continue in his own path."

This led to considerations of taking action against Gandhi because

according to Nathurams perspective "in the face of such an attitude there could be no middle ground. The Congress had to relinquish its autonomy and be satisfied with playing a subordinate role accommodating his idiosyncrasie , philosophical notions and primitive

ideals or it had to move forward independently without him."

Another accusation is that Gandhi played a role in the creation of

Pakistan: "When the Congress leaders, with Gandhi's endorsement partitioned and divided the country. A land we venerated. My heart filled with anger. I bear no grudge against anyone but I must express

my lack of regard for the current government due to their unfair

favoritism, towards Muslims. However I also recognize that this policy was entirely influenced by Gandhi's presence."

Despite Pakistan attacking us with the first installment, Gandhi pressured

congress to give funding and the rest is history.