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Pune: The grandnephew of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar admitted before a special MP/MLA court here that the Hindutva ideologue had filed five mercy petitions with the British government and had appealed for recruitment into the British Army during World War II, even as he offered an explanation for both.

Satyaki Savarkar, who has filed a criminal defamation case against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for allegedly defaming Savarkar during a speech in London, made the admissions during his cross-examination before the court.

‘Purpose was military training for future India’

Facing questions from Gandhi’s counsel, Milind Pawar, Satyaki said the appeal for army recruitment was not an act of subservience but a strategic move to prepare young Indians for an eventual armed forces of an independent India.

“The purpose was to provide young people with military training, firearms training and experience in holding various positions in the army by joining the then Indian Army, so that after India became independent, it would have its own armed forces at its disposal,” he said, adding that trained Indian soldiers had proved crucial when Pakistan attacked India immediately after Partition.

On the five mercy petitions, Satyaki said Savarkar was not alone, with many political prisoners having sent similar appeals to the British government while lodged in the Cellular Jail in the Andamans.

Satyaki also admitted that Savarkar had never described the cow as a god, but only as a useful animal. This position, he said, had been misrepresented by critics who had not read Savarkar’s works in full.

Two-nation theory, RSS links

On the two-nation theory, Satyaki maintained that while Savarkar had made factual observations on the subject, the concept had not originated with him but with Sir Syed Ahmed Khan.

Asked why Savarkar was “glorified” over other revolutionaries such as Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt, the complainant declined to answer directly. “Debates and differences of opinion are part of every great man. It is the job of the Government of India to bring national glory,” he said.

To a question on whether Savarkar was the ideological inspiration of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and affiliated political parties, Satyaki said he was not aware of who such organisations considered their ideological icons. 

On the display of Savarkar’s oil painting in Parliament and demands for conferring the Bharat Ratna on him, he said both were matters exclusively within the government’s jurisdiction, noting pointedly that Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, all from the same family, had received the country’s highest civilian honour.

The cross-examination of Satyaki Savarkar is scheduled to continue on June 1.