Uddhav, Mishra and Tej add fuel to Savarkar row

NEW DELHI: The installation of Veer Savrakar’s bust by ABVP led DUSU in Delhi University has created a massive uproar on social media as now not only the members of students organisations but senior politicians at pan-India level have also jumped into it the row.

A day after Savarkar’s bust was blackened by the National Students' Union of India (NSUI) workers, Shiv Sena supremo Uddhav Thackeray has praised the move by ABVP for installing the statue and commented that whoever does not believe in the ideology of Veer Savarkar should be “beaten” in public. Mr Thackeray said that public thrashing of those insulting Savarkar will make them understand the value of freedom.

Mr Thackeray’s comments came a day after a row broke over the installation of busts of Savarkar, Bhagat Singh and Subhash Chandra Bose in North Campus of Delhi University (DU). On the wee hours of Thursday, the Delhi chief of NSUI had blackened the bust of Savrakar and also put a garland of shoes around it and claimed that Savarkar did not deserve to be on the same platform as Bose and Bhagat Singh.

Following the act, the Delhi police has deployed police personnel round the clock in the vicinity of the statues to tackle such act in near future. AISA activists protested near the statue on Friday and criticised the installation of Savarakar’s bust.

Meanwhile, Lalu Prasad Yadav’s son and former health minister of Bihar Tej Pratap Yadav condemned the installation of Savarkar’s bust. In a tweet, Tej Pratap said that by putting the bust of a coward in the university they will teach students about traitors.

The RSS’s organisation at Delhi University has made fun of the sacrifices made by the heroic sons of India by installing the statue of British agent Savarkar along with Bhagat Singh and Subhash Chandra Bose.

Hitting out at the tweet posted by Mr Yadav, DUSU president Shakti Singh said: “Wish, you would have gone to the university.” Mr Singh said: “Irony is Tej who didn’t go to university in his life is commenting on it.”

Former Delhi minister Kapil Mishra, who recently joined BJP, too supported the move by ABVP. “Insulting the statue of Veer Savarkar is an unforgivable crime. Salute his ideological power, which causes fear and fury among the traitors even 50 years after his death. Delhi youth will give a befitting reply to these criminals,” he tweeted.