India’s Right-Wing Fringe Outfit Erects Temple to Worship Gandhi’s Assassin

© AP PhotoNathuram Godse, left, one of nine co-defendants in the Mohandas Gandhi assassination conspiracy case, and defense counsellor L.B. Bhopatkar confer May 27, 1948, at the start of the hearing
Nathuram Godse, left, one of nine co-defendants in the Mohandas Gandhi assassination conspiracy case, and defense counsellor L.B. Bhopatkar confer May 27, 1948, at the start of the hearing - Sputnik International
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Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin Nathuram Godse, who was hanged, is revered by some radical outfits in India as a true martyr, as he was against the partition of India after the end of British rule.

New Delhi (Sputnik) — The death anniversary of Nathuram Godse, the person who killed India's father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi, has lately been in the news for all the wrong reasons. Godse was hanged on November 15, 1949. The day is observed in India by some radical groups as "balidan diwas" or the day of sacrifice.

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Some right-wing Hindu fringe groups eulogize the day and call Godse a martyr. They plan to erect a temple dedicated to Godse. The Hindu Mahasabha – the umbrella organization of such fringe groups, on Thursday informed through a press release that a 32-inch tall bust of Godse was installed at its office in the Daulatganj area of Gwalior city on the occasion and that a temple would be built at the site.

The national vice president of the Hindu Mahasabha, Jaiveer Bharadwaj, later told the PTI that the organization's request for permission to build a temple dedicated to Godse was rejected by the local administration. He said the temple will now be functional at the office with plans for a routine veneration of Godse's bust. Godse worked at the same office for some time, according to records.

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Bharadwaj described Godse as a true nationalist, as he was against the partition of India that divided the country into India and Pakistan in 1947. Godse, who assassinated Mahatma Gandhi on January 30, 1948, wished that his ashes would be immersed in water, as per Hindu ritual, only after India was unified again. Therefore, his ashes are still preserved by his followers.

The veneration of Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin, Nathuram Godse, has evoked a mixed response on the social media. India’s opposition party, the Indian National Congress, has demanded that a case of sedition be filed against the group.

Meanwhile, Gwalior's additional district magistrate has sought clarification from the Hindu Mahasabha on why Godse's temple was built without authorization.

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