Biography

Savarkar: A Contested Legacy, 1924-1966

Savarkar: A Contested Legacy, 1924-1966

  • Downloads：9796
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-08-22 06:51:46
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Vikram Sampath
  • ISBN：067009031X
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
  • Download

Summary

Decades after his death， Vinayak Damodar Savarkar continues to uniquely influence India's political scenario。 An optimistic advocate of Hindu-Muslim unity in his treatise on the 1857 War of Independence， what was it that transformed him into a proponent of 'Hindutva'？ A former president of the All-India Hindu Mahasabha， Savarkar was a severe critic of the Congress's appeasement politics。 After Gandhi's murder， Savarkar was charged as a co-conspirator in the assassination。 While he was acquitted by the court， Savarkar is still alleged to have played a role in Gandhi's assassination， a topic that is often discussed and debated。

In this concluding volume of the Savarkar series， exploring a vast range of original archival documents from across India and outside it， in English and several Indian languages， historian Vikram Sampath brings to light the life and works of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar， one of the most contentious political thinkers and leaders of the twentieth century。

Download

Reviews

Girish ，

This book does a justice to the contested legacy of the Veer Savarkar。 Also， it laid bares the truth about several claimed 'tall' leaders of the Indian Independence and shows their human infirmities and their blunders which dealt a great deal of damage to the Indian Independence movement。 The best part is author not holding himself back in the criticism of Savarkar where it was due， nor shying away from a glowing praise for him when it was needed。 This is how leaders should be analysed - not in This book does a justice to the contested legacy of the Veer Savarkar。 Also， it laid bares the truth about several claimed 'tall' leaders of the Indian Independence and shows their human infirmities and their blunders which dealt a great deal of damage to the Indian Independence movement。 The best part is author not holding himself back in the criticism of Savarkar where it was due， nor shying away from a glowing praise for him when it was needed。 This is how leaders should be analysed - not in whole so as to whitewash all of their actions but an independent review of their every major action should be done so as to decipher them and their effects on their society。 A must read for all who wants to understand the truth about Savarkar and on the Indian Independence movement。 。。。more

Aditya Kulkarni ，

This is the second part of the two-volume biography of Veer Savarkar by Vikram Sampath。 The first one， Savarkar: Echoes from a Forgotten Past 1883-1924 was published in 2019 and since then， I was most looking forward to reading the second part once it was published。 This book picks up exactly from where the first book ended and its every bit is as brilliant as the first one。 The author yet again does a fine job in bringing the persona of Savarkar to life and he does it superbly。 Very often， bi This is the second part of the two-volume biography of Veer Savarkar by Vikram Sampath。 The first one， Savarkar: Echoes from a Forgotten Past 1883-1924 was published in 2019 and since then， I was most looking forward to reading the second part once it was published。 This book picks up exactly from where the first book ended and its every bit is as brilliant as the first one。 The author yet again does a fine job in bringing the persona of Savarkar to life and he does it superbly。 Very often， biographies are either written as hagiographies or as criticism reflecting the author's inherent bias。 However， Vikram Sampath has done an outstanding job in writing this biography with a tone that is mostly objective throughout the book。Just like the first book， this one is a rollercoaster ride of emotions。 The author has done a phenomenal research， going through primary and secondary sources in plenty and like the first book， he has researched content in Kannada， Marathi， and other Indian languages also apart from English。 Although Savarkar was released after serving 14 years of his double life sentences in the notorious Kaala Paani prison in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands， he wasn't a free man for another 13 years as he had to be confined to the Ratnagiri district and desist from involving in any kind of political activity which were the terms of his release。 So， effectively for 27 years of his life， Savarkar was a captive man。Savarkar had already started working for the cause of Hindutva while he was incarcerated in the Andamans and he truly became the champion for the Hindus' cause after his release from captivity。 As the President of the Hindu Mahasabha， he worked tirelessly towards liberating India from colonial rule。 He faced many hardships， including spending the 13 years of his life in a very impoverished state at Ratnagiri。 It is worth observing that although Savarkar was ideologically opposed to the Congress and its leaders like Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru， he always maintained the tone of respect with respect to them and did not have any personal enmity with any of his ideological opponents。 In that sense， Savarkar was a true liberal。 He was a rationalist too who attacked the superstitions and dogmas of religion。 Forever a practical man， he was a realist and many of his observations and statements that he made in his life turned out to be prophetic in nature later on。One of the most poignant aspects of the book is how the author has covered the tragic assassination of Mahatma Gandhi。 He has presented all facts from different perspectives with regards to this incident。 A unique point here is that the author has touched upon a point that has been very much ignored in Indian history - the anti-Brahmin riots that took place in different parts of India， and most severely in Maharashtra where members of the miniscule Brahmin community were systematically targeted in a spree of murder， rape， assault， and arson in the aftermath of the assassination of Gandhi just because the perpetrator， Nathuram Godse happened to be a Brahmin。 Savarkar was named an accused in the case but was fully exonerated and released with honour after it was found that the prosecution had not evidence against him and their entire case was based on filmsy grounds。 It is quite disturbing to see how opportunistic the government of even that time was to use a tragic incident to settle scores with a political opponent。It is sad that rather than appreciate and remember Savarkar for his contributions towards the Indian struggle for independence， political parties today are often indulged in a fight over his name。 This， despite the fact that he was hailed as a great man by even those were ideologically opposed to him during his lifetime。 Either way， it is my humble opinion that this two-volume biography should be read by every Indian irrespective of his/her political ideology。 Savarkar was an enigmatic personality who has had an impact on lives on many Indian， and his legacy will be everlasting， however contested it might be。 。。。more

G ，

An extremely well researched and comprehensive book。 A must-read on the reality of Veer Savarkar and his life and thinking and his great sacrifices for nation。 Wonderful！

Ruchik ，

Loved this one， what a man， what a life ！ Vikram Sampath brings out all aspects of Savarkar's life。 There was a lot of action in the first book， this one emphasizes more on Savarkar's thoughts/philosophies。 Until the climatic portions: the assassination of Gandhi and the decision of the government to try Savarkar based on not very strong evidence。 That part reads like a court room thriller。 Overall a must read; I am glad the author included details about the anti Brahmin riots in 1948; which I d Loved this one， what a man， what a life ！ Vikram Sampath brings out all aspects of Savarkar's life。 There was a lot of action in the first book， this one emphasizes more on Savarkar's thoughts/philosophies。 Until the climatic portions: the assassination of Gandhi and the decision of the government to try Savarkar based on not very strong evidence。 That part reads like a court room thriller。 Overall a must read; I am glad the author included details about the anti Brahmin riots in 1948; which I did not know a lot about。 Brilliant book over all！ 。。。more

nikhil kale ，

Amazing bookAmazing book about a great hindu nationalist。 Beautiful in its writing and well researched。 Easy to read and recommended for all interested in recent Indian history

Mayuresh ，

Well-researched and insightful read。 A very vital book for our times to understand the legend and his perspective。 A detailed account of his life， action and views in the English language was missing and this book bridges in that gap。 In recent times， there is a trend to make certain baseless allegations such a legendary figure -- in this context， it becomes vital that today's generation reads about this National Hero from his own accounts and the primary sources of those times。 Savarkar's imme Well-researched and insightful read。 A very vital book for our times to understand the legend and his perspective。 A detailed account of his life， action and views in the English language was missing and this book bridges in that gap。 In recent times， there is a trend to make certain baseless allegations such a legendary figure -- in this context， it becomes vital that today's generation reads about this National Hero from his own accounts and the primary sources of those times。 Savarkar's immense sacrifices， his constant crusade of rights of Hindus， his extensive work in Ratnagiri for eliminating untouchability， his constant harassment by British authorities and later persecution by political rivals in a Free India are all something makes this book a compelling read。 The author has weaved a logical narrative， through painstaking research， based on contemporary primary sources to illuminate the reader on the multi-layered complex issues of the time。 I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested not only in Savarkar but also in learning about freedom movements than ran parallel to， but differed in principle from， the Gandhian movement of the time。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Savarkar: A Contested Legacy, 1924-1966

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Savarkar: A Contested Legacy, 1924-1966&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Savarkar: A Contested Legacy, 1924-1966&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0