Bihar governor Rajendra Arlekar has triggered a controversy by claiming that the British quit India not due to Satyagraha, but after seeing arms in the hands of
the Indians.

He alleged that the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR) propagated false narratives adhering to the “Leftist standards”.

“Our freedom movement was not bina khadag, bina dhaal (without sword and shield). The British were forced to think whether they should remain here or not when many people took up guns and weapons,” Arlekar said.

“They (the British) did not leave because we did not have shields and were doing satyagraha. They went away after seeing that the people have guns and weapons in their hands and can go to any extent to liberate their motherland,” Arlekar added.

He also appealed to go through the debates of the British MPs in their parliament which speak about the armed struggle.

Satyagraha was a method of nonviolent resistance for a just cause used and popularised by Mahatma Gandhi. It was first used at Champaran in Bihar to oppose forcible indigo farming and other atrocities by the British.

The words “bina khadag, bina dhaal” used by Arlekar referred to a song in praise of Mahatma Gandhi, which goes like this: “De di hamein azadi bina khadag, bina dhal, Sabarmati ke sant tune kar diya kamaal. (Gave us freedom without the use of sword and shield, O saint of Sabarmati, you did wonders).” It was written by poet Pradeep and sung by Hemant Kumar in the 1954 Hindi movie Jagriti.

The Bihar governor was speaking in Goa at the launch of the book, A Brief History of Freedom Struggle in North East of India (1498 to 1947), written by Anandita Singh on Friday. Videos of his speech have gone viral on various social media platforms.

Arlekar has been deeply connected to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and hails from Goa. He was an MLA and also Speaker of the Goa Legislative Assembly there and keeps visiting his native place while serving as the governor of Bihar.

Speaking further at the book release event, the governor accused the historians of the country of trying to set narratives according to the Leftist standards that were in their minds.

“The Leftists tried to set a narrative in our country. It is a misfortune of our country that when it became independent in 1947, the people in power adhered to what we call the Nehruvian model, which was a Leftist model. The members of the cabinet of Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru were of Leftist inclination. How could have they thought of our country and its soil? Their faith and trust lied somewhere else,” Arlekar added.

Referring to the Indian history written in the books, Arlekar asserted that the ICHR weaved a narrative that the people of India were born to be enslaved.

“Unfortunately, the then (Congress) government also supported their narrative. This was a very sad part at the beginning of our Independence,” he said.

Refuting the notion that Indians were bad in preserving historical evidence, Arlekar said: “This is not true. The evidence was destroyed by them. But we still have the evidence…”

The Bihar governor also touched on the subject of “inquisition” in Goa by the Portuguese and called for efforts to bring out its truth.

Arlekar’s speech was condemned by Congress leaders in Bihar and they asked him not to indulge in such things while holding a Constitutional position.

“The RSS think tank keeps planting such things. Arlekar’s statements are RSS-sponsored and he should not speak such things while holding the post of the governor. Such words cannot be justified in any manner. Nobody can ignore the great contribution of Mahatma Gandhi and various Satyagraha agitations in India’s Independence,” Congress spokesperson and former MLA Harkhu Jha said.

Calls and messages to the governor’s officer on special duty on the issue did not elicit a response. Arlekar’s mobile phone was switched off.