Sadhvi Pragya has landed herself in yet another controversy. Yesterday, during an interjection in the parliament, the Sadhvi called Nathuram Godse, the assassin of MK Gandhi, a ‘patriot’. Rahul Gandhi, today, jumped into the controversy with assertions that are good for political rhetoric, but amount to a massive self-goal.
Terrorist Pragya calls terrorist Godse, a patriot.
A sad day, in the history of
India’s Parliament.— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) November 28, 2019
Rahul Gandhi tweeted that it was a sad day in the history of India’s Parliament and that ‘terrorist Pragya’ had called ‘terrorist Godse’ a patriot. First of all, the former Congress president is talking about the same woman who the UPA government had tortured and imprisoned in its pursuit to prove ‘Hindu Terror’. Secondly, the Congress party in Maharashtra is in an alliance with a party that glorifies Nathuram Godse.
Since it would be too much to expect Rahul Gandhi or the Congress party to pay heed to the opinions of ‘Nationalists’, perhaps they ought to listen to their new alliance partner, the Shiv Sena. The Shiv Sena in 2010 hailed Nathuram Godse as a patriot in its mouthpiece ‘Saamna’. In the editorial, the party proclaimed that Godse had not come from Italy, instead was a staunch patriot who was angered by the partition and the Hindu genocide during the most tragic event in recent Indian history.
Read: Three questions that should be asked and debated around Sadhvi Pragya calling Godse a Deshbhakt
The editorial came after Godse featured in the souvenir of a Marathi literary meet in Thane which attracted protests from the NCP and the Congress party. “Of course, it would have been alright if it was not there. But just because it was mentioned, there was no reason for the Congress or the NCP to get so upset. No one glorified Nathuram as the assassin of Gandhiji in the souvenir,” the Shiv Sena editorial said.
The editorial continued, “Those who hate Nathuram are in love with Ishrat. Do they want Ishrat’s photo to be published in the souvenir instead of that of Nathuram?” “He always stood for united India. Is it anti-national to harbour such feelings? He was a real patriot,” it stated.
Sadhvi Pragya stated a fraction of what the Congress party’s ally said. And yet, Rahul Gandhi reserves the word ‘terrorist’ only for the Sadhvi and Godse, it doesn’t call Shiv Sena a terrorist sympathizer. There’s a reason for this, of course. Rahul Gandhi’s comment had nothing to do with taking a moral stand or anything of that sort. It was mere politicking. It would be a surprise if the scion of the Nehru-Gandhi Parivar even has a strong opinion on the matter but he has to maintain the pretence that he does.
The greatest victims of politics are truth and reason. Moral grandstanding is more important than one’s allegiance towards facts. And the facts on the matter are clear. A person can be a patriot and an assassin at the same time. The two are not mutually exclusive. But over the years, Nathuram Godse has become a stick for politicians to beat Hindutvavadis with. And that is precisely what Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party are doing.
It is important to take a minute to comprehend the sheer depravity of the Congress party and the Nehru-Gandhi Parivar. Rahul Gandhi forgave the killers of his father because it would be beneficial for them in elections. This is the level of depravity we are talking about. The Congress party doesn’t really care about what people think of Nathuram Godse. If they did, they wouldn’t have allied with the Shiv Sena whose opinions about Nathuram Godse are even more radical than Sadhvi Pragya’s. By its own logic, the Congress party is indeed allying itself with ‘terror sympathizers’.
