Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)

Bengaluru, Aug 17: By issuing a statement in the past that India did not secure freedom because of Mahatma Gandhi's principle of nonviolence, BJP MP Ananth Kumar Hegde had courted controversy. His statement had given rise to debates and criticisms.

Now, BJP national general secretary C T Ravi, who also happens to be a former Karnataka minister, has issued a similar statement. When praising Veer Savarkar for his sacrifices, he said that it would be a half-truth if we give the entire credit for India becoming independent to Mahatma Gandhi's principle of non-violence.

A function to release a book, 'Veer Savarkar' authored by Vikram Sampath had been organized at Taj Hotel here. Speaking on the occasion, Ravi said that Veer Savarkar is a role model for everyone. He mentioned that Savarkar was the first to think of Hindutva but it had created a controversy then. "But now people have come to accept the notion of Hindutva. Our history has inflicted injustice on some people. Some had the facility of table and pen to author their autobiographies but Savarkar did not have these facilities when in jail. Articles and literature about him are coming out now. At the same time, the claim that Gandhiji's ideal of non-violence brought us freedom is a half-truth," he added.

Ravi said that after India became independent, even Ambedkar did not get justice. "If we are able to find an answer to why India got bifurcated after independence, we will be able to understand Savarkar's eminence," he said.