NEW DELHI: The Congress on Nov.25 said it would be dangerous to dismiss Gopal Godse and his friends who have justified the murder of Mahatma Gandhi as a “lunatic fringe because they have other respectable faces like the Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh and Bharatiya Janata Party.”
Party spokesperson V.N.Gadgil said that BJP leader L.K.Advani might have disowned them (the statements of Godse and others), but the fact remained that Nathuram Godse was a RSS member and Gopal Godse, in his book, had reproduced the prayer of RSS at the end of a statement made by his brother Nathuram Godse.
It was also important to remember, he said, that the BJP leadership had refused to acknowledge Mahatma Gandhi as the father of nation.
Gadgil said that they (the BJP, RSS, Godse brothers and others) represented “vile, vicious, obnoxious, perverted and twisted minds, which should have no place in the public life of India,” and urged all political parties to fight against such forces. Our Correspondent adds from Bombay: Police on Wednesday registered cases against Gopal Godse, brother of Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin Nathuram Godse and four others who at a public meeting at Dadar last week vilified Mahatma Gandhi and called for a movement to see that Pakistan and Bangladesh cease 10 exist, Gopal Godse is at present in Delhi.
Deputy Commissioner Surinder Kumar said the cases had been registered under sections 153A, 505 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code relating to promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, etc and committing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony, statements conducting to public mischief and acts cone by several persons in furtherance of common intention.
The cases have been registered against Gopal Godse, SD Shewde, Dhananjay Godse and two others. The meeting last week was in commemoration of the death anniversary of Nathuran Godse, who was hanged for the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, on Nov.15.
Article extracted from this publication >> December 3, 1993
