PARCHURE'S CONFESSIONAL STATEMENT
Then the witness read out the confessional statement of Dr. Dattatreya Sadashiv Parchure of Gwalior, accused number nine. Parchure in his statement had said, 'For making this confessional statement, the police has not threatened me nor have they promised me any reward. I am making this statement of confession absolutely voluntarily, of my own free will.
'I have known Nathuram Vinayak Godse personally since 1941, but I had heard about Godse in 1939 itself. Godse accompanied by Apte came to my home at about 11 o'clock on the night of 27 January 1948. Godse told me that he had come on a very important mission. "I am going to perform a terrible deed before 2 February. I am going to murder Mahatma Gandhi".
'Godse possessed a revolver, but he wished to procure a more modern and reliable hand gun. I told him that under no circumstances would I give him my licensed pistol, but I promised to get him another. Next morning, I sent my son Neelkanth and servant Rupa to fetch Dandavate. When I returned home in the afternoon of 28th January I saw that Godse, Apte and Dandavate were trying out a country-made revolver. They went into the courtyard to test it. I did not accompany them.
'Late in the evening Dandavate came back to my home. He had an automatic pistol and approximately eleven or twelve bullets with him. I do not know where he got the pistol. He told us that the price of the pistol was Rs. 500. Apte gave Dandavate Rs. 300 and promised to pay the balance later. That night all three of them left in a tonga.
'On 29 January I told my brother that I had helped Godse and Apte procure a pistol with which they planned to murder Gandhiji. On hearing this, my brother was shocked. He asked me why I had involved myself in such a deed. On the evening of 30 January 1948, when I heard the news about the murder of Mahatma Gandhi, I ordered sweetmeats for Re. 1 and distributed it amongst my family members and friends. I also celebrated the murder of Mahatma Gandhi by distributing sweets to members of the Hindu Rashtra Sena.
'I don't know if Godse and Apte kept the revolver, they had brought to Gwalior with themselves or gave it to Dandavate in exchange for the automatic pistol. I also owned a stengun. I had left it with a friend of mine in Murar.'
TESTIMONY OF BADGE, THE APPROVER
On 20 July the prosecution called upon the approver Digambar Ramchandra Badge to the witness stand. Badge was initially an accused but he later became, as he was referred to, 'maafi cha sakshidar', an 'approver' and was granted a conditional pardon. For the entire text of Badge's statement see Appendix IV.
21 July 1948: Madanlal's counsel, Bannerjee, pleaded with the court to arrange for the transcripts of the public speeches made by Gandhi during his final stay in Delhi. Badge had said during his testimony that the plan was to kill Suhrawardy along with Gandhi, and hence Bannerje said it was necessary to establish the link between the two. Inamdar requested the court that the two armed policemen standing behind Badge should be immediately removed as it could intimidate him. The prosecution replied that there were two reasons for their presence: one was to ensure that he did not escape, and the other was to protect him from being killed or abducted. Badge gave his entire confession and then identified all the accused.
In his testimony Badge further informed the court that on being arrested on 31 January 1948, he had shown the police the homes of Harbans Singh, Deshmukh and the MLA Kharat.
BADGE'S CROSS-EXAMINATION
Replying to a question from Bhopatkar, Badge said, 'We only received funds for our "Delhi Yatra" from one place in Kurla which was from Kale. From another source we got Rs. 400 but that was due to my personal relations and to cover my individual expenses. I am aware of the fact that the programmes of the Hindu Mahasabha are decided by the All India Committee of the Hindu Mahasabha and the Working Committee is obliged to implement the programme. The last convention of the Hindu Mahasabha was held at Gorakhpur in December 1946. Savarkar did not attend the convention as in the past three or four years his health has deteriorated and he does not actively participate in the functioning of the Hindu Mahasabha.' He added that it was not true that Savarkar had not stepped out of his house since the past three years as he used to attend small private meetings and social meetings at his home or close-by. 'He is a well-known writer and poet of Marathi literature. I believe it to be true that there is no other Marathi or English orator as good as Savarkar in the entire land. I don't only consider him a leader of the Hindus. To me he is God.'
23 July 1948: On being questioned by Bhopatkar, Badge said, 'The policy of the Hindu Mahasabha is to bring about a reunification of divided India. Cabinet Minister, Dr. Shyamaprasad Mukherjee must have taken permission from Savarkar before joining the Cabinet. I am sure he must have consulted with the president of the All India Hindu Mahasabha, Bhopatkar before accepting the ministry. I am aware that after Partition, the Mahasabha has pursued a policy of working in close cooperation with the Nehru-led Congress ministry. At the annual convention of the provincial Hindu Mahasabha of Maharashtra, Bhopatkar had moved a resolution seeking to extend cooperation to the Nehru-led government. Godse and Apte had strongly opposed the resolution. Bhopatkar had said that the Mahasabha should be disbanded and emerge as a political party. When Bhopatkar made this suggestion Nathuram Godse had become extremely agitated and rushed towards Bhopatkar brandishing a dagger. Apte had also supported Godse. Badge claimed that the convention had taken place in December 1946. (Bhopatkar corrected him saying Badge was forgetting the year.) Apte and Godse had an independent outlook. Yes, sometimes they did consult with the Mahasabha leadership. Many a times Godse and Apte used to criticise the policies of the Mahasabha in their publications, first in Dainik Agranee, and then in HinduRashtra.
'I asked Namjoshi to put in a word with G.V. Ketkar to give me a job. Ketkar gave me the job of collecting donations for the Hindu Sanghatan Nidhee and for the Hindu Anaath Ashram. These funds were used for all Hindus, immaterial of which political ideology they subscribed to. In 1942 I sold off some furniture and other family heirlooms and with a capital of Rs. 75–Rs. 100, I established the Shastra Bhandar. I employed Kistayya. I used to buy and sell weapons from M.T. Kulkarni who owns a weapons shop named Hindu Bhandar.
'Whenever there were Hindu-Muslim clashes and riots in Bombay, Dixit Maharaj would place orders for large quantities of weapons, ammunition and explosives. I used to supply licensed and unlicensed weapons like pistols, revolvers, gun cotton bombs and other explosives to Dixit Maharaj. He did not possess the requisite licenses, but that never prevented him from accepting delivery'. Badge then went on to give information about Dada Maharaj. He added, 'I know MLA Kharat, but I don't know Honaji Ganpat. Kharat was a Congress Socialist and I know him since he got married in 1946. I gave two packets of explosives to Kharat on the evening of 16 January 1948, and told him not to give them to anyone but the members of the Hyderabad state Congress. Kharat used to know Babasahab Paranjape, Deshmukh, Sheshrao and Nayak among the active workers of the Hyderabad state Congress. I had instructed Kharat that he should hand over the packets to any one of the four and accept whatever amount they paid. The price was decided beforehand and they knew it. When I returned to Poona from Delhi on 22 January, I did not meet Kharat. I was arrested on 31st January, a day after Gandhiji's murder. During the interim nine days, I did not meet any worker of the Hyderabad Congress either. I bumped into G.V. Ketkar one afternoon. I was terrified of being arrested as I knew that Madanlal had been arrested. I realised that if I went to Kharat's home, he would hand over both the packets of explosives, and the police would implicate me. 'On 31 January a very angry
'On 31 January a very angry and violent mob attacked my house and shop. They torched my shop. All my goods and account books were destroyed in the fire. An angry mob attacked the homes and offices of Hindu Mahasabha leaders and those who were believed to have been involved in Gandhi's murder.'*
23 July 1948: Atmacharan announced that he had received an anonymous letter threatening to kill him. Daftary and Bannerjee too, claimed that they had received death threats. The
judge ruled that he would not order the curtailment or relaxing of any security procedures.
Badge's** counsel requested that his questioning be postponed as Badge had a cold and fever. Atmacharan denied the request and said he would be given a chair, but the proceedings would not be suspended.
Badge continued, 'On 15 January when I accompanied Apte to Dixit Maharaj's home, Apte informed me that his group had collected arms, ammunition and explosives worth Rs. 40,000 and they were taking them to Kashmir. When Karkare and Madanlal left, Dixit Maharaj's home with the "stuff", Apte told me that we were going on an important mission. Two days later Apte told Dixit Maharaj that we were going to Kashmir. On the morning of 20 January, when I met Apte at the Hindu Mahasabha Bhavan in Delhi, I did not ask for any money. But I showed him a statement of accounts for the Rs. 350 he had given me. I had not informed my servant Shankar about the plan to kill Gandhiji till all of us had assembled at Marina Hotel on the afternoon of 20 January. After this, weapons were distributed to all of us. It was then that I told Shankar that I was going to hurl a grenade at a man and then I would shoot him. "You must do exactly the same to the person as I do." Then I told him that the man we were going to kill was an old man and his name was "Gandhi". On the 20th, I did not see Suhrawardy present at the prayer meeting. I escaped from Birla House within a few minutes of the bomb explosion, and so I cannot say what happened thereafter. I heard the explosion, I saw Madanlal being caught. As I have a very remarkable beard and long hair I am easily recognisable. I realised that if I did anything that evening I would be caught. So I handed over the hand grenade I was carrying to Shankar, and ordered him not to do anything till I signalled to him. If Nathuram, Apte, Karkare or Gopal Godse or anyone of them had thrown the grenades they were carrying first, I would have signalled Shankar to throw the grenades he was carrying at Gandhiji. But as soon as Madanlal exploded the gun cotton bomb, the four rushed out of the prayer ground, got into the taxi and ran away. I realised their intentions. They had planned to implicate Madanlal, Shankar and me, while they would get away scot-free.'
27 July 1948: Answering a question by Bhopatkar, Badge said, 'To distinguish the hand grenades I supply from the others, I always mark mine with a red "X" and paste a red tape around them. I have sold approximately fifty to sixty hand grenades till now. On returning from Delhi, I cleaned up my entire house. I did not wish to be caught with any incriminating evidence. I did not even contact my old friends. From 23rd to 31st January I remained confined in my house. The next day I was arrested and kept in the Central Jail at Budhwaar Peth. From there I was moved to the Cantonment Police Station. Shankar was not arrested along with me. I saw Shankar in the Bombay prison during the second week of February. I was transferred to the prison in Bombay on 4 February and remained incarcerated there until I was brought to Delhi on 24 May. I was granted an official pardon at 5.30 pm on 21 June 1948.'
He continued to say that he was kept almost in solitary confinement in the Bombay branch of the CID till the recording of his statement was over. Replying to Mengle's questions, Badge stated, 'In 1947, I opened a Veer Savarkar Vachanalaya, Library, in Poona. I used to order Marathi publications and periodicals, which subscribed to the Mahasabha's school of thought. I was aware of the philosophy propounded by the Dainik Agranee, which was later renamed HinduRashtra. It vehemently opposed partition and believed that the policy of appeasing Muslims and non-violence adopted by the Congress were detrimental for the nation.'
28 July 1948: The Law minister Dr. Ambedkar and his wife were present in court for some time. Mengle asked Badge, 'Didn't Apte tell you that by accompanying him to Delhi you would be able to not only participate in the demonstration but also sell arms and explosives for very high prices to the refugees and thus make a huge profit?' Badge replied in the negative. Replying to another question he said that on the morning of 20 January, when Apte and he reconnoitred Birla House, no one had either reprimanded or confronted them. He said, 'I know about Congress's non-cooperation during the Second World War. I know of the Maharashtra Vyayam Mandal of Poona where recruitment of officers for the armed forces was done. The government financially supported the organisation and would recruit all those recommended by the Mandal. Bhopatkar was its founder. I used to be known as a Hindu rashtra sevak. Karkare is from Ahmednagar and owns Deccan Guest House. Hindu refugees are given free lodging and boarding there. Karkare had gone to Noakhali in East Bengal to serve the Hindu refugees there and carried one hundred daggers with him, which he had purchased from me. On 9 January, Karkare did not tell me who Madanlal, Chopra and Omprakash were. I was later told that Madanlal is an adventurous, brave and enthusiastic young man. It was only after his arrest on 20 January that I learnt that he was a refugee from newspaper reports.'
29 July 1948: 'On 24 May when I was brought to Delhi I was not kept in detention at Red Fort. Around 8th February I was taken to Poona, there I took a police party to the homes of Kharat, Nagmode and Shelar. On 27 May I was produced in court. In the beginning of June, I had sought permission to meet J.D. Nagarvala, deputy commissioner of police, Bombay. He was the chief police prosecutor (Nagarvala was the chief investigating officer). I told him that I wished to confess everything. He said that I would have to testify as a witness. But I emphasised on making a confessional statement. When I was in the custody of the Bombay police, my wife Rukmani came to visit me in May. I told her "Bring all my promissory notes, IOUs and important letters." Since she was unlettered, she needed someone who would read out the letters so that she could decide which ones were important. After fifteen days she returned carrying the letters. I don't know whether the letter, displayed in court as exhibit B.90, was one brought by my wife or not. (This was a letter written to Badge by Karkare in Marathi, its translation in English is as follows: "The person who has come to you is a trustworthy gentleman. I could not come yesterday due to great difficulties. I am specially sending this man. You must have received Rs. 400 by telegraphic money-order. The copies of the books which you have bought may be sent with this person, who has been instructed in regard to the arrangements to be made for the payment. Every time ten articles are to be handed over, and for each article Rs. 15 should be charged. I will come on 2nd and settle my accounts. Do not worry about money. The gentleman from Bombay must have arrived. Confusion arose because the telegram from you was received one day late.") I had not given this letter to the police.'
Shankar's counsel Mehta began his cross-examination of Badge at ten minutes past three in the afternoon. Badge said, 'I took part in the conspiracy to murder Mahatma Gandhi willingly and intentionally. I knew the consequences of my actions and was willing to face them. I was anxious due to the riots that broke out in Poona, otherwise I am not at all bothered about my future. After I was arrested, my brother Narayan came to see me only once in Bombay, accompanied by my wife and family. I was committed to taking care of myself and serving my country. I used to serve the Hindu cause by giving weapons free of cost to Hindus. I never thought of becoming rich by saving money. There is no one to look after my wife and children now.'
30 July 1948: It was expected that Badge's cross-examination would end that day. The court would then make him sign his testimony.
Inamdar drew the court's attention to the fact that the prosecution had produced the approver as their last witness, which had caused a lot of rumours to gain credence about his client, Gopal Godse (by then Inamdar had also started representing Gopal Godse). He said he hoped that in future they would produce their witnesses in a manner not detrimental to the interests of his client. In Hindu Mahasabha and RSS circles, speculation had gained ground that Gopal had made a confession implicating all the other accused and was considered the 'weak link'. For many years Gopal and his family faced criticism due to these assumptions.
Not being satisfied by his counsel's questioning of Badge, in a surprising move Shankar Kistayya requested the court to allow him to question Badge. He asked Badge if he had been informed of the plan to kill Gandhi. Badge said Sha
nkar was not informed why they were in Poona, and later in Bombay or Delhi. He was told about the gang's objective while coming down the stairs of the Marina Hotel. Later, Badge identified the bag in which he had carried the revolver and hand grenade to the prayer meeting. He had stated during his cross-examination that Apte and Nathuram were independent-minded, but often sought advice from others. The 'others' he clarified as being the president of the All India Hindu Mahasabha, besides Tatayarao (Savarkar), Annarao Bhopatkar and G.V. Ketkar in the past.
31 July 1948: Recording of Badge's testimony (sixty-eight pages) and his cross-examination had taken nine days. The written statement was read out to the witness and then he was asked to sign it. On 30 January 1948, at the time of Nathuram's arrest, Rs. 592 was recovered from him, which was today returned to him.
2 August 1948: The director of the Scientific Laboratory of East Punjab, Dr. D.N. Goyal, had been requested to do an analysis of the recovered bullets, spent shells and the revolver. He stated that the spent cartridges and bullets were from the same revolver. He was cross-examined by all the lawyers. The court asked Goyal to clarify certain points: whether the Forensic Laboratory was under the overall command of the deputy inspector general of CID; whether the laboratory was locally presided over by the principal of the Police Training School; and finally, whether the witness received his salary from the police department.
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