Indian History
Veer Savarkar Jayanti
- 29 May 2021
- 3 min read
Why in News
On 28th May, India paid tribute to the freedom fighter, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar (Veer Savarkar) on his birth anniversary.
- He was an Indian independence activist, politician, lawyer and writer.
- He is also known as Swatantryaveer Savarkar.
Key Points
- Birth: Born on 28th May,1883 in Bhagur, a village near Nashik in Maharashtra.
- Related Organisations and Work:
- Founded a secret society called Abhinav Bharat Society.
- Went to the United Kingdom and was involved with organizations such as India House and the Free India Society.
- He was the president of Hindu Mahasabha from 1937 to 1943.
- Savarkar wrote a book titled ‘The History of the War of Indian Independence’ in which he wrote about the guerilla warfare tricks used in 1857 Sepoy Mutiny.
- He also wrote the book ‘Hindutva: who is hindu?’.
- Trial and Sentences:
- Arrested in 1909 on charges of plotting an armed revolt against the Morley-Minto reform (Indian Councils Act 1909).
- Arrested in 1910 for his connections with the revolutionary group India House.
- One of the charges on Savarkar was abetment to murder of Nashik Collector Jackson and the second was waging a conspiracy under Indian Penal Code 121-A against the King emperor.
- Following the two trials, Savarkar was convicted and sentenced to 50-years imprisonment also known as Kala Pani and transported in 1911 to the Cellular Jail in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
- Death: He died on 26th February 1966 due to fasting on his own wish of death.
Abhinav Bharat Society (Young India Society)
- It was a secret society founded by Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and his brother Ganesh Damodar Savarkar in 1904.
- Initially founded at Nasik as Mitra Mela, the society was associated with several revolutionaries and political activists with branches in various parts of India and London.
India House
- It was founded by Shyamji Kishan Verma in 1905 in London.
- It was opened to promote nationalist views among Indian students in London.
Free India Society
- Savarkar went to London in 1906. He soon founded the Free India Society, based on the thoughts of the Italian nationalist Giuseppe Mazzini (Savarkar had written a biography of Mazzini).
Hindu Mahasabha
- Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha is one of the oldest organizations of India as it was formed in 1907. Eminent leaders extended this Organization in 1915 on ALL India basis.
- The Eminent personalities who founded this Organisation and who presided over the ALL INDIA Sessions held include Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, Lal Lajpat Rai, Veer Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, etc.
