(31) Accordingly we started the Daily Marathi paper “Daily Agrani” and after some period limited company was registered. The sums advanced by Veer Savarkarji and others were converted into shares of Rs.500/= each. Amongst the directors and donors were such leading and respected gentlemen as Seth Gulab Chand (a brother of Shriman Seth Walchand Hirachandji), Mr,Shingre, an exe Minister of Bhor, Shreeman Bhalji Pendharkar, the film-magnate of Kolhapur and others. Mr.Apte and myself were the Managing Directors of the Company. I was the editor solely responsible for the policy of the papers We conducted the paper for years on strictly constitutional — lines, and pleaded the policy of Hindu Sanghatan in general.
(32) As press representatives of this daily, Mr. Apte and myself used to visit the Hindu Sanghatan Office situated at Veer Savarkar’s house in the middle hall on the ground-floor of that house. This Hindu Sanghatan office was in the charge of Mr.G.V.Damle, the Secretary to Veer Savarkar and Mr. Appa Kasar, Veer Savarkar’s body-guard. We used to visit this office to secure from Mr.Danle, the Secretary, public statements issued ‘by Veer Savarkar for the Press in general, to note down other important information about the President’s tours, interviews etc. which his secretary was authorized to publish. Mr.A.S.Bhide, who used to edit an English Weekly namely “Free Hindustan” was also residing with his family as a tenant in a set, of rooms on the same ground floor.
The second reason why Mr. Apte and I used to visit Savarkar Sadan was to see. Mr,Bhide, Damle, Kasar and other Hindu Sabha workers, who used to gather at the Hindu Sanghatan Office and had been personal friends to each other, To meet them all and have friendly chats, whenever we went to Bombay, we used to go to this office, Sometimes ‘we used to discuss there the Hindu Sanghatan work with them. Some of them used to help us in securing advertisements for our paper.
(33) But it must be specially noted that these our casual visits to Savarkar Sadan were restricted generally to this Hindu sanghatan Office, situated on the ground- floor, for the above mentioned reasons. Veer Savarkar was residing on the first floor of the House; It was only very rarely we could interview Veer. Savarkar personally and that too by special appointment.
(34) Some three years ago, Veer Savarkar’s health got seriously impaired and since then he was generally confined to bed. He thereafter suspended all his public activities and more or less retired from public life, This deprived of his virile leadership and magnetic influence, the activities and influence of the Hindu Mahasabha too got crippled and when Dr.Mookerjee became its President the Mahasabha was actually reduced to the position of a handmaid to the Congress. It became quite incapable of counteracting then dangerous anti-Hindu activities of Gandhite cabal on the one hand -and the Muslim League on the other, seeing this I lost all hope in the efficiency of the policy of running the Hindu Senghatan movement on the constitutional lines of the Mahasabha and began to shift for myself. I determined to organised 4 youthful bands of Hindu Sanghatanists and adopt a fighting programme both against the Congress and the League without consulting any of those prominent but old leaders: of the Mehasabha.
(35) I shall just mention here two striking instances only out of a number of then which painfully opened my eyes about this time to the fact that Veer Savarkar and other old leaders of Mahasabha could no longer be relied upon by me and the Hindu youths of my persuasion to guide or even to appreciate the fighting programme with which we aimed to counteract Gandhiji’s activities inside and the Muslim League outside, In 1946 or thereabout the Muslin atrocities perpetrated on the Hindus under the Government patronage of Suhrawardy, in Naokhali made our blood boll, Our Shane and indignation knew no bounds, when we saw that Gandhiji had come forward to shield that very Suhrawardy and began to style him as “Shahid Saheb” – a Martyr Soul (I) even in his prayer meetings , Not only that but after’ coming to Delhi Gandhiji began to hold his Tague meetings in a Hindu temple in Bhangi colony and persisted in weeding Hite from Quoran as a part of the prayer in that Hindu temple inspite of the protest of the Hindu worshippers there.
Of course he dared not read Gecta in a mosque in the teeth of Muslin opposition, He knew what terrible would have been the Muslim reaction. But he could safely trample over the feelings of the: tolerant Hindu. To belie this belief I determined to prove to Gandhiji that the Hindu too could be intolerant when his honour was insulted.
(36) Mr.Apte and I decided to stage a series of demonstration’s in Delhi into his meetings and make it impossible for him to hold such prayers, Mr,Apte with a large section of the refugees took out a procession in Delhi condemning Gandhiji and his Shahid Suhrawardy and rushed into his prayer meeting in the Bhangi colony, Seeing the tumultuous protest that followed, Gandhiji slyly took shelter behind barred and guarded doors although at that time we had not the slightest idea of using any force,
(37) But when Veer Savarkgr read the report of this demonstration, instead of appreciating our move, he called me and blamed me privately for such anarchical tactics, even though this demonstration was peaceful, He said “just as I condemn the Congresses for breaking up your party meetings and election booths by disorderly conduct, I ought to condemn any such undemocratic conduct on the part of Hindu Sanghatanists also. If Gandhiji preached anti-Hindu teachings in his prayer meetings you should hold your party meetings and condemn his teachings. Amongst us all different parties should conduct their propaganda on strictly constitutional lines”.
(38) The second leading incident took place just after this, when the partition of India was actually decided on. A group of Hindu Mahasabhaites wanted to know what the Hindu Mohasabha’s attitude should be with regard to the Congress Government which was certain to be the Government of the new State, ruling over the so-called Indian State in the remaining part of India, Veer Savarkar and other top-ranking Hindu Mohagabha leaders quickly and emphatically said that any Indian Government formed to conduct such o freed Indian State should be no longer looked upon as a Government of a party, a Congress Government, but must be honoured and obeyed a8 a National Government of Hindustan, and howsoever we deplored the creation of Pakistan, our future not to should be a loyal and all out support to our newly born Free Indian State.
Thus alone shall we be able to safeguard our newly won: Freedom. Any attempt on our part to undermine the Indian State would bring in a Civil War and enable the Muslims to realize their sinful and secret mission to turn whole of India into Pakistan.
(39) My friends and I however returned unconvinced. We felt in our heart ‘of hearts that time had come when we should bid goodbye to Veer Savarkar’s lead and cease to consult him in our future policy and programme. Nor should we confide to him our future plans.
(40) Just after that followed the terrible outburst of Muslim fanaticism in the Punjab and other parts of India. The Congress Government began to persecute, prosecute and shoot the Hindus themselves who dared to resist the Muslim forces in Bihar, Calcutta, ‘Punjab and other places. Our worst fears seemed to be coming true; and yet how painful and disgraceful it was for us to find that the 15th of August 1947 was celebrated with illumination and festivities, while the whole of the Punjab was set by the Muslims in flames and Hindu blood ran rivers, The Hindu Mahasabhaites of my persuasion decided to boycott the festivities and the Congressed Government, and to launch a fighting programme to check Muslin onslaughts, The Working Committee of the Hindu Mahasabha and All India Hindu Convention were to be held on or about 9th and 10th of August 1947, in Delhi. Veer Savarkar was to preside. Mr, Apte and. other friends and myself wanted to make a last effort to bring the Mahasabha and its veteran leaders like Voer Savarkar Dr .Mookerjee, Mr.L.B.Bhopatkar and others to our views and to adopt a fighting resolution.
(41) The Maha Sabha Working Committee did not accept our suggestion to appoint a council of action against Hyderabad or boycott the Congress Government which was to run the “newly created State of Divided India. To my mind to” recognize a State of Divided India was tantamount to be a” party to the cursed vivisection of India, “But instead the Working Committee passed a frothy resolution and asked people to hoist the Bhagwa Flag on their houses on the day of August 15th 1947. Veer Savarkar went further and actually insisted that the tri-colour flag with the wheel should be recognized as a National Flag. We openly resented his attitude,
(42) Not only that but on the 15th of August, Veer Savariar setting aside the will of the majority of Hindu. Sanghatanists hoisted this new flag with a wheel, as a National Flag, on his house along with the Bhagwa, In addition to that when Dr,Mookerji asked his permission through a trunk call to Veer Sovarkar as to whether Dr.Mookerji should accept a folio in the Indian Union Ministry, Veer Savarkar emphatically replied that the new Government must be recognized as a National Government whatever elected party be leading it, and must be supported by all patriots and consequently Hindu Sanghathanists ought to extend their co-operation by peeping port-folio if called upon to do so, He also congratulated the Congressed Ministers for the compromising attitude they were taking in calling on & Hindu Sabha Leader like Dr. Mookerji to participate in the framing of the National Ministry. Mr.Ehopatkar too supported Dr.Mookerji supported Dr. Mookerji.
(43) By this time it came to Light that some top leaders of the Congress and some of their provincial Ministers too had contacted Veer Savarkar and there was a brisk correspondence between them for forming a united front to support the new State, which policy Veer Savarkay had already advocated. I-myself could not be opposed us & common front of patriots, but while the Congress Government continued to be. so sheepishly under the ‘thumb of Gandhiji and while Gandhiji could thrust his anti-Hindu fads on that Congressed Government by resorting to such a simple trick as threatening a fast, it was clear to me that any commo. front under such circumstances was born to be another form of setting up Gandhiji’s Dictatorship and consequently a betrayal of Hindudom.
(44) Every one of these steps taken by Veer’ Savatkar were too deeply resented by me that I myself along with Mr.Apte and some of the young Hindu Sanghathanists friends decided once for all to chalk and work out our active programme quite independently of the Maha Sabha or its old veteran leaders. We resolved not to confide any of our new plans to any of them including Veer Savarkar.
(45) I began to criticize the Hindu Maha Sabha, and the policy of its old leaders in my daily paper ‘Agvani’ or ‘Hindu Rashtra sand to’ openly call, upto young generation of Hindu Smghathanists to accept our own active programme,
(46) In order to work out my new Apa venders programme I” decided to undertake two definite item in hand to begin with, The first item was to organize a series of powerful though peaceful demonstrations against ‘Gandhiji so as to make him feel the impact of organised Hindu discontent and to create confusion and disorder by demonstrative _ protests etc in his obnoxious prayer meetings through which he then carried out his anti-Hindu propaganda; and secondly to carry on an agitation against ‘the Hyderabad State to defend our Hindu brothers and sisters near about the frontier line from the fanatic atrocities commits ted on then py the Muslim. As such a programme could only be carried out on secret and dictatorial lines we resolved to divulge it only to those who believed in it and would obey our orders without questioning
(47) I would not have referred to these above details in this statement but for the learned Prosecutor’s opening speech in which he pointed me as a mere tool in the hands of Vides Savarkar and which statement I felt to be a deli- berates insult to my independence of judgment and action. The above facts had to be mentioned to dispel the incorrect impression about me, if any. Consequently before I begin to narrate the latter part of this statement I re- assert that it is not true that Veer Savarkar had any knowledge of my activities which ultimately led ne to fire shots at Gandhiji, I repeat that it is not true that either Mr,Apte in my presence or I myself told Badge that Veer Savarkar had given us on order to finish Gandhiji, Nehru and Suhrawardy as the approver is made to state false lye It is not true that we ever took Badge to Veer Savarker’s house to take the last Darshan of Veer Savarkan in connection with any such plot or that Veer Savarlar ever said to us “Be successful and cone back” – “Yashasvi houn ya”. Neither Mr. Apte in my presence nor I myself ever told Badge that Veer Savarkar told.us that Gandhiji’s hundred years were over and therefore we were bound to be successful. I was neither so superstitious as to crave such blessings, nor so childish as to believe in such fortune-telling.
