Speaking at the launch of Information Commissioner Uday Mahurkar’s book ‘Veer Savarkar: The Man Who Could Have Prevented Partition’ in Jaipur, former editor of Organiser magazine, Seshadri Chari said had Jinnah been offered the PM post, Partition wouldn’t have taken place”
Taking the advatage of hindsight, Chari said; ” we would have prayed for his long life – but he would have not long…even the British knew he was a TB patient and was on his death bed. The British knew he would not live even a year”
Chari wished that our leaders at that time, read Congress, should have thought of it and made Jinnah Prime Minister on 15th August 1947. It is a documented fact that Muhamad Ali Jinnah was an active aspirant of leading India and broke the links with Congress once it became clear to him that in democratic set up, a muslim will not get the top post
Chari went on to say, “If we didn’t agree to Partition and chose to fight for independence for another ten years, the picture of this nation may have been different. There may not have been Pakistan probably,” .
As a mater of fact equating Savarkar with Mahatma Gandhi, Mahurkar, meanwhile, said a personality like Savarkar was beyond Bharat Ratna. Savarkar had not been cosidered for Bharat Ratna so far. No award is considered big enough for Mahtma Gandhi who had such a towering stature and impeccable persona. Gandhiji never had Bharat Ratna.
At the book launch in Delhi last month, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had sparked a controversy by saying that Savarkar filed a mercy petition with the British during his incarceration in Andaman jail on Mahatma Gandhi’s suggestion. Singh’s claim sparked a debate about its accuracy.
The book has been written by Mahurkar and Chirayu Pandit and published by Rupa publications.
