The national museum dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi has published a special edition of its monthly magazine, Antim Jan, on Hindutva leader Vinayak Damodar Savarkar hailing him as a “great patriot” whose place in history is “no less than that of Gandhi”.

Savarkar, among the progenitors of the idea of Hindu Rashtra, was accused as a co-conspirator in Gandhi’s January 1948 assassination but was acquitted for lack of evidence.

The June issue of Antim Jan, brought out in Hindi by the Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti, an institution under the Union culture ministry with the Prime Minister as its chairperson, features an illustration of Savarkar on its cover.

It carries old articles reproduced from the works of Gandhi on religious tolerance and of Savarkar on Hindutva.

There’s an article by late Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee titled “Ek Chingari theh Savarakar (Savarkar was a spark)”.

In October 2019, Tushar Gandhi, great-grandson of the Mahatma, had accused Savarkar of being the “patron” of Gandhi’s assassination. He had argued that though Savarkar was acquitted, he was not pronounced innocent by the court.

The Samiti oversees the Gandhi Smriti at Birla House in Tees January Marg where the Mahatma was assassinated by Nathuram Godse, and which was later converted into a museum. It also oversees Gandhi Darshan, a memorial at Rajghat.

Among the articles carried by the June issue of Antim Jan are “Veer Savarkar Mahatma Gandhi hatya abhiyog” by Shreerang Godbole, on the Gandhi assassination charges; “Gandhi evam Savarkar ka sambandh (The relationship between Gandhi and Savarkar)” by Madhusudan Cherekar; “Veer Savarkar ko etihasik nyay kab (When will Savarkar receive historical justice)” by Umesh Chaturvedi; and “Swatantrata ki vedi ke do phool: Gandhi aur Savarkar (Two flowers on the altar of Independence: Gandhi and Savarkar)” by Mritunjay Kumar.

The foreword, titled “Mahan deshbhakt Veer Savarkar (The great patriot Veer Savarkar)”, by Samiti vice-chairperson Vijay Goel says: “Vinayak Damodar Savarkar was a great patriot, freedom fighter, carrier of indomitable courage, wonderful writer and a fabulous orator.”

Savarkar’s legacy as a freedom fighter has been controversial. He was lodged in the Cellular Jail in the Andamans but secured his freedom by filing mercy petitions.

Goel has written in the foreword: “It pains that those who have not been lodged in jail for a day, did not suffer for the nation, did not do anything for the country and the nation, they criticise patriots like Savarkar who have made sacrifices. Even though Savarkar’s place in history and his honour when it comes to the freedom struggle is no less than that of Gandhi.”

Goel has argued the country should remember Savarkar in the run-up to the 75th anniversary of Independence. The issue also features an article by the editor of the magazine, Praveen Dutt Sharma, titled “Gandhi ka gussa (Gandhi’s anger)”.