New Delhi: A fresh twist emerged in the defamation case involving Congress leader Rahul Gandhi after Vinayak Damodar Savarkar’s grandnephew, Satyaki Savarkar, acknowledged before a Pune court that the Hindutva ideologue had submitted 10 mercy petitions to the British administration during his imprisonment.

Appearing before Special Judge Amol Shinde, Satyaki was cross-examined by Gandhi’s lawyer Milind Pawar in connection with the criminal defamation complaint filed over Gandhi’s remarks on Savarkar made during a 2023 speech in London.

During questioning, Satyaki accepted that Savarkar had repeatedly approached British authorities seeking a reduction in his sentence.

He also agreed that several prominent revolutionaries of the era, including Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Ashfaqulla Khan and Batukeshwar Dutt, did not seek clemency from the colonial government.

The courtroom exchange further highlighted the differing approaches adopted by freedom fighters during British rule.

Satyaki acknowledged that Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt remained committed to their political beliefs until the end and did not seek concessions from the colonial regime.

However, he strongly disputed suggestions that Savarkar’s petitions reflected submission or allegiance to the British Crown.

According to him, the wording used in the applications followed official administrative conventions and should not be interpreted as an expression of loyalty.

He maintained that requesting remission of a sentence was a legal option available to prisoners and was not unique to Savarkar.

Satyaki also noted that no inmate was compelled to submit a mercy plea and that the decision rested entirely with the individual prisoner.

While he accepted that many revolutionaries endured severe hardships in British jails, he said he could not identify all those who had or had not filed similar petitions.

The testimony came during proceedings linked to Satyaki’s complaint against Rahul Gandhi.

The Congress leader had alleged in a speech delivered in the United Kingdom that Savarkar had written about participating in an assault on a Muslim man and feeling pleased about it.

Satyaki has challenged that claim, insisting neither the incident nor the alleged account appears in Savarkar’s writings.