Savarkar's grandson, BJP leaders condemn Karnataka Minister Gundu Rao's 'beef' comments on Savarkar

New Delhi: Following Karnataka Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao's statement on Veer Savarkar's ideology and claims of him "consuming beef" despite being a Chitpavan brahmin, Savarkar's grandson, as well as Bharatiya Janata Party leaders, came down heavily at Rao and the Congress on Thursday.
Ranjit Savarkar, the grandson of Veer Savarkar, said that it was Congress's strategy to defame Savarkar, especially when elections were at the door. He stated that the Congress wanted to divide Hindu society into different castes in order to win elections and that it was the Britisher's policy of "divide and rule."
Ranjit Savarkar also said that the claims of Veer Savarkar "consuming beef" were false and that he would also file a defamation suit against Gundu Rai for his statement.
"This is a strategy of Congress to defame Savarkar time and again, particularly when elections are coming. Earlier, Rahul Gandhi was doing it and now his leaders are making statements... Congress has shown its real face now. Congress wants to divide Hindu society between castes and win elections. This is like the Britisher's policy of divide and rule," he said.
"The statement about Savarkar eating beef and supporting cow slaughter is false. His original article in Marathi meant that cows were very useful and that's why they are considered deities. He was also the president of a Gau Raksha Samelan... I am going to file a defamation suit against him," he added.
He further claimed that former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had always followed the policies of Veer Savarkar and never followed a single policy of Nehru or Gandhi.
Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis said that people in the Congress don't know anything about Savarkar and only insult him.
"These people do not know anything about Savarkar. The insult him again and again. Savarkar has expressed his opinion on cows very well. He had said that since the birth to death of a farmer, cows have helped him. So, cows have been given the status of God. Rahul Gandhi started the series of making such false statements on Savarkar, and I think they are trying to take it forward," Fadnavis said.
BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi also slammed the Karnataka Health Minister for his statement and said that "such knowledge" proves that people had lost their "mental balance" and that they should go to a "mental institution" to get better.
"Such knowledge of these people proves that they have lost their mental balance. If they keep giving such wisdom, then society will not take them seriously. He should go to a mental institution to get better and gain knowledge about the great personalities of the country," Naqvi said.
Karnataka Leader of Opposition and BJP leader R Ashoka also spoke on the matter.
He said that the Congress from all across the nation had decided to "threaten Hindu and Hindu Gods" and questioned why they always threaten Hindus and not Muslims.
Ashoka further said that in the future the Hindu people would teach the Congress a lesson.
"I think the Congress party--from Delhi to Karnataka--has decided to threaten Hindus and Hindu gods. Now, they are threatening freedom fighters. Savarkar was a freedom fighter; he was in jail in Andaman and Nicobar... I think the mindset of the people of Congress is always to threaten Hindus. I would like to ask Congress: Why do you always threaten Hindus and not Muslims? In the last three Parliament elections, they were given a verdict for these types of activities. So, in the future too, the same will happen. Karnataka will teach you a lesson; every Hindu will teach you a lesson," he said.
Earlier on Wednesday, Karnataka Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao said that Savarkar's fundamentalist ideology was very different from the Indian culture, despite him being a nationalist and that it wouldn't be Savarkar's argument but Mahatma Gandhi's that should win in the country.
Speaking at a book launch of the Kannada version of "Gandhi's Assassin: The Making of Nathuram Godse and His Idea of India" by journalist Dhirendra K. Jha, Rao said, "If we can say with a discussion that Savarkar wins, that's not right; he was a non-vegetarian eater, and he wasn't against cow slaughter; he was a Chitpavan brahmin. Savarkar was modernist in that way but his fundamental thinking was different. Some people said he used to eat beef and he was openly propagating eating beef, so that thinking is different. But Gandhiji had a lot of belief in Hinduism and was conservative in that but his actions were different because he was democratic in that way."