Why did Nathuram Godse kill Gandhi? 5 untold facts you should know.

Why did Nathuram Godse kill Gandhi? 5 untold facts you should know.

Introduction

Nathuram Vinayak Godse, even after so many years of independence, Indian society is not able to support the ideology of Godse. Godse was the person who created panic in the whole country after independence. But what this Godse did is not hidden from anyone. Godse had killed our country’s so called “Father of Nation” Mohandas Gandhi. We hear and read that one day Godse came and killed Gandhi and went away, but no one wants to know why he did this, nor does anyone want to understand it, Support is a far cry.

All this is not taught in our school textbooks because if the truth about Godse is revealed to India, the politics of the so-called secular parties, which have been taking votes in the name of Gandhi till date, will come to an end.

Many lies have been spread in this country about Godse. Along with this, Hindus are also insulted many times and even Hindus are called terrorists. This is because Godse was a Hindu. We have seen Godse’s character and life only from the perspective of Gandhians.

But now the time has come for you to change your perspective. I believe that after reading this blog, your perspective towards Godse will completely change and you will be able to know the truth which was hidden from you till now.

Disclaimer-: “I have not glorified Nathuram Godse in this blog. This article is based on research and facts and if anyone is glorified in this country then it is Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. Who was presented as a hero in this country.”

Let’s talk about those 5 untold truths about Godse which were hidden from us-:

1. From Devotee to Dissenter: Nathuram Godse’s Early life and Transformation

2. Political Affiliations often Ignored

3. His Reason for killing Gandhi- In his own words

4. Media and Government supression post Assassination

5. Legacy and modern Re-evaluation

1. From Devotee to Dissenter: Nathuram Godse’s Early life and Transformation:-

Nathuram Godse was born on 9 May 1910 in a small town of Baramati in Maharashtra. His parents lovingly named him Ramchandra. The journey from “Ramchandra Vinayak Godse” to Nathuram Godse is very interesting. Ramchandra’s nose was pierced in his childhood and he was made to wear a “Nath”.

Due to wearing a nose ring in his nose, people started calling Ramchandra ‘Nathu’ in childhood and Ramchandra was named Nathuram. ‘Nathuram Godse’ was born in a Chitpavan Brahmin family. The history of Chitpavan Brahmins in this country is very glorious. From Bajirao Peshwa to Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Veer Savarkar, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, NV Gadgil, Ganesh Savarkar, all were Chitpavan Brahmins.

Why was Godse, who was once a devotee of Gandhi, killed? I am not saying this, but Nathuram Godse himself has admitted this. After Gandhi’s murder, he said in his statement given in the court-:

“When the Congress started the Non-Cooperation Movement, I was a student. I read many speeches about this movement in the newspapers and was influenced by them. I thought of participating in the movement but after some time the movement failed.”(Source: Mahatma Gandhi Murder case, Section 4, Statement of the accused, page no. 97, National Archives)

What happened that Nathuram Godse turned away from being a Gandhi devotee? Actually, Godse’s ideological change happened when he came in contact with Veer Savarkar. But Godse got a shock when Gandhi started appeasing Muslims instead of paying attention to Hindus and Sikhs, especially at the time of partition. Be it advising Hindus to commit suicide during the 1946 riots or going on a hunger strike demanding Rs 55 crore for Pakistan or not supporting the Hindus and Sikhs at the time of partition and insisting on bringing back the Muslims who had gone to Pakistan. There were many reasons that completely changed Godse’s ideology towards Gandhi.

Also read this-:

 https://geopoliticalhistory.com/2025/04/15/1947-partition-who-was-responsible/

2. Political Affiliations often Ignored

Nowadays some politicians put a gun on Godse’s shoulder and call Hindus terrorists. Godse was a part of RSS and Hindu Mahasabha. Around 1930’s Godse joined RSS. After serving in RSS for a few years, Godse went to Hindu Mahasabha where he developed his views on Hindu nationalism.

These so called secular parties call Godse, RSS, Hindu Mahasabha and Hindus terrorists but what about Abdul Rashid who had shot and killed Swami Shraddhanand and Gandhi had called that same “Abdul Rashid” on the stage and called him brother and requested the Hindus to forgive him.

This debate still goes on whether Godse had left RSS before Gandhi’s assassination, isn’t it? Gandhi devotees say that Godse had left RSS but he had internal ties with RSS. But according to official sources, Godse left RSS and joined Hindu Mahasabha because Godse wanted to take part in politics to protect the rights of Hindus. Due to which Godse joined the Hindu Mahasabha. While in the Hindu Mahasabha, Godse did many important works which no one wants to mention.

There was also a movement which no historian or intellectual wants to mention. When the Congress and Gandhi had withdrawn their support, Godse still did not give up. This was during the days when atrocities against Hindus were at their peak in Hyderabad. Even though there were 85% Hindus here, the Muslim government treated them like second class citizens. Muslims had complete control over government jobs. According to government orders, Hindus were prevented from building new temples, constructing yajnashalas and even hoisting the saffron flag.

Seeing this condition of Hindus, Hindu Mahasabha and Arya Samaj together started a peaceful movement. It is worth noting that Hindu Mahasabha was led by Nathuram Godse.

As the Hindu Mahasabha joined the movement, the Congress decided to disassociate itself from it. On 26 December 1938, Gandhi wrote a statement in his own hand on behalf of the Hyderabad Congress, which is recorded in full in these words:-

“Many wrong things have been said about the Hyderabad Congress. It has been described as a communal organisation. The activities of the Congress and the Arya Samaj have been taken as the same. Unfortunately the movements of the State Congress, Arya Samaj and Hindu Mahasabha took place at the same time. Gandhi, Pandit Nehru and other Congress leaders have advised that to clarify their position it is necessary that the Congress should postponed this movement.” (Source:- Sampurna Gandhi vangmay, vol. 68, Page No. 268)

By now Hydari had imprisoned many revolutionaries, including Nathuram Godse. Along with him was PV Narasimha who later became the Prime Minister of the country. There were thousands of people in this movement, but Gandhi’s sympathy was only with the Congress prisoners.

In the letter written by Gandhi to Prime Minister Akbar Hydari on 30 March 1939, he only expressed concern about the workers of the Congress. It was written in the letter:-

“I wait every day for the news that you would have released the Congress prisoners. As you know, I have stopped the Congress from starting “Satyagraha” again. If you come forward with sympathy with the Congress people, So they will prove to be a help rather than a hindrance in starting a new era with you in Hyderabad.”

Gandhi tried very hard to stop this movement. But the cry of the Hindus of Hyderabad reached the British government in London. Under pressure from London, the Viceroy in Delhi had to intervene in the matter. As a result, the Nizam of Hyderabad had to bow down and announced on 16 July 1939 that Hindus would be given all social and religious rights.

It is very surprising that such a big successful movement has not been mentioned in any history book and this was the biggest and successful movement in the political journey of Nathuram Godse.

3. His Reason for killing Gandhi- In his own words

This is the same India where many books were written in defense of Gandhi, many films were made and Gandhi’s assassination was seen from only one perspective.

Why did Godse kill Gandhi? Why was Godse’s last statement banned? Why? If anyone raises his voice in support of Godse, he is labelled a terrorist. But now the time has come. If you read all the statements carefully, today you will know the real truth of the Gandhi assassination, that too from Godse’s point of view.

• ‌Godse’s sharp attack on the spinning wheel, the symbol of Gandhi’s principle of non-violence-:

Godse described Gandhi’s entire political journey and explained which of Gandhi’s actions harmed the nation and Hindu interests.

He discussed topics like Khilafat Movement, Moplah massacre, Gandhi’s opposition to Arya community, Muslim attack on Arya community, murder of Swami Shraddhanand, partition of Sindh, Gandhi’s opposition to Hindi language, Gandhi’s opposition to Shiv Bavni, In his speech he included issues like Muslim reservation in elections, Congress and Gandhi’s bowing before Jinnah, protection of Suhrawardy, policy of differentiating between Hindu and Muslim kings and Gandhi’s opposition to Bhagat Singh and Subhash Chandra Bose. Godse attacked the spinning wheel, the symbol of Gandhi’s principle of non-violence, and said:

“As long as the country followed Gandhi’s policy, the country remained in confusion. Gandhi opposed both the revolutionary movement and the individual and gave importance to nihilistic things like non-violence and Satyagraha. For 34 years Gandhi kept talking about the spinning wheel, but the result was that common people started wearing machine-made clothes in three times the quantity. Even one percent of people cannot manage with cotton clothes. As far as non-violence is concerned, it is foolish to think that the thinking of 40 crore people can be so high that they start behaving according to non-violence.”

In his statement, Godse cited the Kashmir war while criticising Gandhi’s non-violence, saying, “Had Gandhi had such strong faith in his principle of non-violence, he would have ordered his satyagrahis in place of the army, spindles in place of rifles and charkhas (spinning wheels) in place of guns in Kashmir.”

• ‌Partition and Gandhi’s pro-Muslim policies

The most mentioned topic in Godse’s entire statement is Partition and Gandhi’s Pro-Muslim policies. He said in his statement:-

“Gandhi’s principle of Hindu Muslim unity lost its importance when Pakistan was formed. Gandhi should have thought that the fire of hatred burning among Hindus is natural. Thousands of Hindus were killed in Pakistan just for being Hindus and the Indian Government could not do anything to help and protect these unfortunate people. Won’t the Hindus of India be angry and hurt by this? Every person should feel this kind of anger. This is how Hindus have been cruel to Muslims. By doing this, perhaps Hindus in Pakistan could have been protected. It is as natural to express indignation at the atrocities taking place in Pakistan as it is to express pity on other occasions.”

• ‌Godse’s statement – Why did I decide to kill Gandhi?

“I want to tell you that I had nothing but patriotism in my heart. That is why I had to take this step because Gandhi was responsible for the terrible events that happened after the formation of Pakistan. I decided to remove Gandhi from politics forever. I knew that if I did that I would personally lose everything. I am not rich, I belong to the middle class. I was a public worker in my state. Due to the service I rendered, I received respect and honour in my state. I knew that after the murder, people’s opinion about me will change. The respect I have in the society will be lost.”

• ‌The Indian government’s and especially Gandhi’s treatment of refugees

Godse was deeply hurt by the way Gandhi and the Indian government treated the refugees; he described this in detail in his statement-:

“If the Congress government had protected the Hindus in Pakistan after the formation of Pakistan, my anger would have subsided. I could not tolerate the public being cheated. Leaving crores of Hindus at the mercy of Muslims, Gandhians kept saying that Hindus should not come from Pakistan and should stay there. In this way, Hindus got trapped in the clutches of Muslims and kept falling prey to adverse circumstances. When I remember these incidents, I shudder. Thousands of Hindus were massacred every day. Hindu women were paraded naked and sold like animals. A 40 mile long procession of Hindu pilgrims was coming towards India and our government was thinking that it has solved the problem by throwing rotis at them from aeroplanes. If the Indian government had requested Pakistan to stop the atrocities or had threatened that if the atrocities in Pakistan did not stop, the condition of Muslims in India would also be bad, then Hindus would not have been tortured so much. But the Indian government continued to act according to Gandhi’s instructions. When such incidents were happening, Gandhi did not say a word against Pakistan or Muslims. Gandhi is the root cause of the atrocities committed by Muslims to wipe out Hindu race and culture.”

• ‌His pressure on the Indian Government to Pay 55 crore to Pakistan

Even though Gandhians do not believe that Gandhi went on a hunger strike to give 55 crores to Pakistan, the evidence of that period points towards that. Even though Gandhi did not mention 55 crores, it is clear from his statement that Gandhi was impatient to give the amount of 55 crores to Pakistan. When Pakistan attacked Kashmir in October 1947, the Indian government believed that if this money was given to Pakistan, it would buy arms from foreign countries which would help shed the blood of Indian soldiers in Kashmir.

On 6 January, Mountbatten met Gandhi and explained to him that India should pay the outstanding amount of Rs 55 crore to Pakistan, otherwise it would spoil India’s image in the whole world. After this, Gandhi insisted that India will have to pay 55 crore rupees to Pakistan. On the other hand, Sardar Patel said that more money will be given to Pakistan only when the Kashmir issue is resolved. On the evening of January 12, Gandhi announced in a prayer meeting that he would go on a fast unto death the next day i.e. January 13. At that time, almost everyone was thinking that Gandhi’s intention behind this incident was to give 55 crores to Pakistan. The report of the Kapoor Commission, submitted to the Government of India in 1969, indicates that this was true to a large extent.

According to Maniben Patel’s diary, on 13 January 1948, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel and John Mathai met Gandhi. Gandhi had tears in his eyes and said very harsh words, after which Sardar Patel was heartbroken. Later he said in the cabinet meeting, “If we agree to give 55 crores, I will no longer be a part of this cabinet.” (Source : Kapur Commission Report, Volume 1, Page No. 171/181)

Gandhi’s personal secretary Pyarelal Nayyar also confirms Maniben statement and writes:-

Sardar Patel was very upset. He believed in ‘doing rather than talking’, so he sent a message that, “he will do what Gandhiji wants.” In response Gandhiji suggested that the issue of Pakistan’s share of Rs 55 crore in cash should be resolved first. (Source : Mahatma Gandhi: Purnaauhti, vol 4,pg.no. 376, Pyarelal Nayyar.)

The clear meaning of the above statements is that Gandhi had made it clear on the first day of his fast that Rs 55 crore should be given to Pakistan.

4. Media and Government supression post Assassination

After Gandhi’s assassination, the government made every possible effort to suppress this issue. The general public came to know Godse’s side about 10 months after Gandhi’s assassination. After Godse’s statement, a large section of the country stood in support of Godse, especially Hindu and Sikh refugees. Seeing all this, the Indian government panicked, so the government banned Godse’s court statements. Anything that was written in favor of Godse was banned. Even decades later, attempts to publish or screen content about him faced legal hurdles. By not allowing alternative viewpoints to be heard, the state create a one sided history that still dominates textbooks today.

Even after Godse’s death, there was an atmosphere of fear in the government. The Nehru government was afraid that if the bodies of Godse and Narayan Apte were handed over to their families, a huge crowd could gather in their last journey. Not only this, the Nehru government was now also afraid of Godse’s “ashes”. The Nehru government tried its best to erase all traces of Godse.

“Godse’s last wish was that his ashes be immersed in the Sindhu River”. But the Nehru government was so afraid of Godse that they immersed Godse’s ashes in the Ghaggar River. But a local journalist Indra Sen Sharma recovered the bones from the river and even today Godse’s bones are kept safe in the Godse family’s house.

Godse’s ideology was presented to the people in a wrong way by the media. But today all the information is available. Even though the Nehru government tried to eliminate Godse, that ideology was alive yesterday, is alive today and will remain alive in the future too.

5. Legacy and modern Re-evaluation

Even today, Godse’s name is quite popular in Indian politics. Many people see Godse as a hero because he was hanged for his country and religion. But there are many people who call Godse a terrorist without knowing anything. Godse legacy challenges us to re-evaluate, how history is written and who gets to write it.

We have to ask tough questions to history and historians. In the Mahabharata too, when the Kauravas crossed all limits, the Mahabharata war happened. This was the only thing that could happen after so many atrocities on Hindus and Sikhs.

When it comes to country and religion, every youth thinks about how to serve the country and religion. What Godse did was not “murder” but “vadh”. Godse’s legacy needs to be evaluated once again.

Conclusion

Whatever Godse did, no one wants to justify it today. We have already discussed why Gandhi’s “Vadh” was necessary. To some extent, what Godse said was correct, Gandhi opposed the army, industry and everything modern.

Gandhi wanted the youth of the country to be able to earn their livelihood by spinning the charkha. If our country had followed the path shown by Gandhi, it would never have progressed.

Gandhi just wanted to maintain his hold on the thinking of the whole country, which he was doing even before independence. Gandhi made Hindus impotent with his ideas, but gave freedom to Muslims. As we can understand from his book “Hind Swaraj”. Where Gandhi advises Hindus that even if Muslims kill your cow, you i.e. “Hindus” should not resort to violence. Even if Muslims kill you, Hindus should not resort to violence. Rather, Hindus should die happily. If it helps Hindu Muslim brotherhood then Hindus should be killed. According to Gandhi, Hindus took full responsibility for non-violence. Facts may not change your opinion but can give you the complete picture. Because only when we confront uncomfortable truths can we truly understand the past.