Savarkar Echoes from a Forgotten Past, 1883–1924

720 Pages·2019·7.994 MB·English

by  Vikram Sampath

VIKRAM SAMPATH
Savarkar
Echoes from a forgotten past
1883-1924
PENGUIN BOOKS
Contents
Prologue
1. The Early Years
2. Painful Transitions
3. The Birth of a Revolutionary
4. Inside the Enemy Camp
5. And the Storm Breaks
6. Endgame London
7. L’Affaire Savarkar
8. Sazaa-e-Kalapani
9. The Jail Chronicles
10. Political Potboiler
11. Who Is a Hindu?
12. The Interpretation of Thoughts
APPENDICES
Appendix I: Full Text of ‘O! Martyrs’
Appendix II: Full Text of ‘Will and Testament’, 1910
Appendix III: Petitions by V.D. Savarkar
Appendix IV: Is Hindusthan Disarmed?
Illustrations
Bibliography
Notes
Acknowledgements
Follow Penguin
Copyright
Advance Praise for the Book
‘Generally, there is consensus in a country about its great men and women,
allowing some people to make a few critical comments on him or her. It is
rather an exception that opinion in a country gets to be so divided so as to
cause a complete polarization, with some at one pole admiring a person as
a messiah, a trailblazer; and others, on the other, denouncing him as an
ogre, an embodiment of evil. And which pole dominates depends on the
supervening sociopolitical and cultural atmosphere of the country. When
nether pole dominates, it takes a lot of courage on the part of an author to
buck the trend and seek the truth.
‘Vinayak Damodar “Veer” Savarkar (1883–1966) was such an
exceptional person. And Vikram Sampath has proved to be such a
courageous author. In fact, when I undertook to write a biography of Dr
Shyama Prasad Mookerji, incidentally a close associate of Savarkar, I
came across similar feelings; I went ahead notwithstanding, claiming no
credit for any courage, certainly not of the kind that Vikram has shown.
‘For Savarkar was a much more maligned person than Dr Mookerji.
While the onslaught on the latter was more by way of omission than
commission, Savarkar had been directly and personally accused of
complicity in Gandhiji’s assassination; he had also been falsely accused of
begging for mercy to be released from the hellhole otherwise known as the
Cellular Jail in the Andamans, of whipping up hatred against Muslims and
Christians, and so forth . . . Therefore, writing a biography of Savarkar
would take more courage and the most painstaking research possible to
rubbish the accusations thrown at him. This Vikram has been able to do
admirably, plumbing the depths of material on him not only in English but
also in Savarkar’s native Marathi.
‘Vikram’s command of the English language, his writing skills and his
penchant for description, especially of the inhuman torture that the
prisoners had to undergo at the hands of the unspeakable Scottish jailor
Barrie make the text both heart-wrenching as also very readable. The book
covers his life up to about 1924 and leaves the reader waiting impatiently
for the remaining part of his life—possibly the most productive phase—
when he crystallized his concept of Hindutva, put it into practice and got
Dr Mookerji to second for him at a time when his health had begun to fail.
Although the two parted company later, it was Savarkar’s philosophy that
got his second to take it onwards and found a new party, the Bharatiya Jana
Sangh, which later metamorphosed into the Bharatiya Janata Party, which
has just come to power at India’s centre with a decisive majority’
—Tathagata Roy , governor, Meghalaya, Raj Bhavan, Shillong
‘Because of his opposition to the Congress and the belief that he was
complicit in the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, historians of
independent India have tended to ignore the life of V.D. Savarkar. This is
the first of a two-volume biography based on formidable research in
hitherto unconsulted documents in Marathi and in archives across the
world. It explores, as never before, the formation of the young
revolutionary who was to create the doctrine of Hindutva. This is a key
work for understanding the development of ideas dominant in Indian
politics today’
—Prof. Francis Robinson , Royal Holloway, University of London
‘The first serious biography of Savarkar in English, this book allows us to
understand a man whose ideas have come to define contemporary India. A
long overdue study, and one full of new material, it heralds a welcome
departure in the scholarship on Indian political thought’
—Prof. Faisal Devji , professor of Indian history, University of Oxford
‘Based on extensive research, Vikram Sampath provides a gripping
narrative of the first half of the life of an anti-colonial revolutionary
turned ideologue of Hindutva. Sampath’s biography delves into Savarkar’s
formative influences in Maharashtra, his camaraderie with radicals in
England and France, and his suffering as a prisoner in Andaman. We get a
rich portrait of Savarkar as a poet and writer as well as political activist
and theorist’
—Prof. Sugata Bose , Gardiner professor of history, Harvard University
‘Vikram Sampath’s book is not limited to providing mere biographical
details of the life of Savarkar, but offers historical context through
detailed descriptions of historical events of that era. Thus, it makes a dual
contribution to Indian history. The author staggers Savarkar’s biography
with details of the sinister British rule in India, which gave rise to
powerful nationalist leaders of multiple stripes during the early phase of
the Indian independence movement.
‘The book fulfils a long overdue prerequisite for an authentic historical
biography of a brave son of India. It examines the life of Savarkar closely,
while also providing lesser-known details, which help dispel the many
mythical accounts of Savarkar’s life. As a corollary, this book also
supplements our existing patchwork of knowledge on the history of Indian
independence.
‘Sampath’s is both a biographical work as well as a historical book on
one of the most misunderstood nationalists of India. This book brings
forward, for the first time, an authoritative examination of material
(letters, speeches, official communication, newspaper reports) and
numerous never-before-studied documents.
‘The book begins with the birth of Savarkar, narrating events of his
childhood and young adult life in the first few chapters interspersed with
thought-provoking details of the political circumstances of India. Through
the depiction of successive struggles of young Savarkar in plague-affected
western India between 1899 and 1900, the author demonstrates the
struggles of average Indians under British rule. With Savarkar’s move to
Nashik from 1900 onwards, his nationalist activities gained momentum as
he founded Mitra Mela (also its affiliate Rashtrabhakta Samuha).
Savarkar’s activities and entanglements with the national movement here
pitted him against British authorities, and at times brought him in
opposition to established national leaders including Tilak. Crucial is
Savarkar’s decision to champion the celebration of Shivaji Utsav during
this early phase. Savarkar’s brilliant speeches inspired numerous young
nationalist leaders, while the British government used these speeches to
prosecute him on charges of sedition many year later. Of utmost interest
are the chapters discussing the life of Savarkar in London (including his
short stint in Paris) followed by his imprisonment in the Andamans and
later in India. Sampath’s rich prose brings history to life with amazing
clarity.
‘The book makes a most valuable and original contribution to historical
scholarship on the Indian independence movement. It also makes
important “modifications” to the hitherto established views on the
independence movement, giving a new and critical analysis of the events.
His study infuses India’s independence movement with the necessary
complexity, which has remained too simplistic for far too long due to
missing information. Sampath offers a consciously alternative narrative of
India’s independence that is representative of her numerous trials and
tribulations.
‘The book captures the formative period of India’s independence
movement, which was the true crucible of India. Emerging under alien
rule, India endured the most arduous journey, which was only partially
recollected in the simplistic narrative preserved in India’s history books.
Sampath successfully addresses this lacuna by bringing forward the
dimensions that have missed a critical evaluation. He offers an alternative
narrative to the prevailing colonial and Western recollections of the
independence movement, thus providing a new and original lens to
examine Indian history.