Karnataka Congress Minister Sparks Row, Calls Veer Savarkar 'Beef Eater'

Bengaluru: Dinesh Gundu Rao, the Karnataka Health Minister of Congress , sparked a fresh row when he referred to Veer Savarkar has a ‘beef eater’ who not just ate beef but also propagated the same. The Congress leader also made a mention of Mohammad Ali Jinnah.

‘Veer Savarkar Beef Eater’: Karnataka Congress Minister

While addressing the book launch of the Kannada version of ‘Gandhi’s Assassin: The Making of Nathuram Godse and His Idea of India', Dinesh Gundu Rao said, "If we can say with a discussion that Savarkar wins, that's not right; he was a non-vegetarian eater, and he wasn't against cow slaughter; he was a Chitpavan brahmin. Savarkar was modernist in that way but his fundamental thinking was different. Some people said he used to eat beef and he was openly propagating eating beef, so that thinking is different. But Gandhiji had a lot of belief in Hinduism and was conservative in that but his actions were different because he was democratic in that way."

‘Jinnah Believer of Secularism, Not Veer Savarkar’: Dinesh Gundu Rao

The Karnataka Congress Minister also spoke about Mohammad Ali Jannah in the gathering; he said that Jinnah believed in secularism unlike Savarkar. He said, "Jinnah was also a hardcore Islamic believer, but he used to eat pork. As people say, after innovation theory, Jinnah was not a fundamentalist; he wanted to be a prime minister, president and wanted a separate country. That's why he followed secularism; Savarkar wasn't like that. The RSS, Hindu Mahasabha and other right-wing groups are trying to build fundamentalism, which we have to answer by understating their fundamentalism. Politically and socially, awarding people and making people understand is important. We can't defeat them just like that. In all traditions, people are not fundamentalists."

On the book launch, the Karnataka minister said in a post on ‘X’ (formerly known as Twitter), “Released the Kannada version of the book 'Gandhi's Assassin: The Making of Nathuram Godse and His Idea of India' by renowned journalist Dhirendra K. Jha at an event organized by Jagrita Karnataka and Aharnishi Prakashana. I appreciate the efforts of renowned columnist A. Narayan and journalist Manoj Kumar Guddi for meticulously translating the book. The book presents a well-documented account of the mindset of Nathuram Godse, the man who assassinated Mahatma Gandhi, and the events surrounding that tragic moment. It also explores how Savarkar influenced Godse's thinking. Gandhiji’s belief in democracy stands as a powerful counter to the rising influence of Savarkar's ideology and the growing wave of fundamentalism it represents today.”

(Inputs from ANI)