Chandra Bhushan

A video interview of Gopal Godse, brother of Nathuram Godse, was presented before a Pune court on Tuesday as defence evidence in the criminal defamation case filed by Satyaki Savarkar against Congress leader and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi. During the cross-examination of Savarkar, Gandhi's counsel Advocate Milind Pawar submitted the transcript of the interview, in which Gopal Godse states that Nathuram Godse was an RSS volunteer, while also noting that the organisation had never openly called for Mahatma Gandhi's death. The evidence was placed before Special Judge Amol Shinde, who is hearing the case related to Gandhi's remarks about Vinayak Damodar Savarkar. The defence also referred to portions of the interview dealing with the lifting of the ban on the RSS after Gandhi's death, including references to correspondence between Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president G.V. Ketkar and then Home Minister Vallabhbhai Patel. Meanwhile, Satyaki Savarkar told the court during cross-examination that Vinayak Savarkar had never harboured ill will towards Muslims and had in fact written about their progress and advancement. He alleged that Gandhi's remarks had damaged Savarkar's public image by portraying him in a negative light. Advocate Sangram Kolhatkar, representing Savarkar, argued that the Kapoor Commission was not set up specifically to investigate Savarkar but to examine whether the government had prior knowledge of a possible attempt on Gandhi's life. The defence, however, maintained that the video evidence supports the claim that Nathuram Godse's ties with the RSS had ended before the incident. The cross-examination is set to continue on September 3, with the case expected to draw further attention to historical questions around Savarkar, Nathuram Godse, and the RSS. #Punetimesmirror #RahulGandhi #SavarkarCase #PuneCourt #DefamationCase