Mahatma Gandhi s Assassination Story

Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated by Nathuram Godse on January 30, 1948, He was shot thrice and Hey Ram were his last words, read the original FIR filedOn 30th January 1948, Gandhi was assassinated in New Delhi by Nathuram Godse who held him responsible for weakening India by insisting upon a payment to Pakistan and Gandhi Ji’s bias to the Indian Muslims.

The man of the century had the courage of heart and spirit of the unafraid. His life and teaching reflect the values of this country and the values of humanity. He had been a beacon of light to an army of freedom fighters who practiced non-violence in world and deed.

Gandhi’s memorial at Raj Ghat in New Delhi bears the epigraph ‘Hey Ram’ which is believed to be his last words when he was shot.

Sequence of Events on January 30, 1948

Mahatma Gandhi, accompanied by his sisters and his grand nieces was headed to a prayer meeting at Birla House. In the midst of the crowd – his fans and followers, his assassin reached up to him at around 5.17 pm and bowed. One of the girls accompanying Gandhi told Ghodse that Bapu was already running late for the meeting and that he should move out of the way and not delay him anymore. At that moment Nathuram Ghodse reached out for his pistol – Beretta M 1934 and fired three shots straight at him from a distance of about three to four feet.

Gandhi fell back with the impact saying the words, “Hey Ram” and blood was spurting out from him. He was rushed inside while the crowd broke out into panic. When the security guards and policemen rushed to the scene, Ghodse shouted “Police” and surrendered on the spot.

Nathuram Godse s Trial

Ghodse was tried in Punjab High Court in Peterhoff, Shimla and on November 8, 1948, he was granted a death sentence to be hanged unto death. Jawaharlal Nehru and Mahatma Gandhi’s two sons opposed this death sentence believing this would dishonor the beliefs and the legacy of Mahatma Gandhi who was strictly against death penalties and believed everyone deserved a second chance.

Nathuram Ghodse and Narayan Apte were hanged on November 15, 1949 at the Ambala Jail. Vinayak Damodar Sarvakar was arrested as a conspirator but he was acquitted and later released due to the lack of evidence against him. The Hindu Mahasabha was criticized and the RSS (Rashtriya Swayam Sevak) was temporarily banned. However, during the investigation, there wasn’t any evidence of conspiracy or knowledge of Gandhi’s assassination on the part of the RSS so the ban was lifted.

Nathuram Ghodse was a Hindu Extremist with major connections to the group Hindu Mahasabha. He and a group of about four to five people, including his accomplice Narayan Apte were present with him on the day of the assassination. The others barring these two were let go due to the lack of evidence. They had made several attempts on Gandhi’s life previously, finally succeeding the sixth time.

The conspirators arrested for Gandhi’s Assassination:

Nathuram Ghodse
Narayan Apte
Vinayak Damodar Sarvakar

Jawaharlal Nehru addressed the nation by saying that:
“Friends and comrades, the light has gone out of our lives, and there is darkness everywhere, and I do not quite know what to tell you or how to say it. Our beloved leader, Bapu as we called him, the Father of the Nation , is no more. Perhaps I am wrong to say that; nevertheless, we will not see him again, as we have seen him for these many years, we will not run to him for advice or seek solace from him, and that is a terrible blow, not only for me, but for millions and millions in this country.”

Gandhi’s ashes were immersed in some of the world’s major rivers like the Thames and Nile as he had wished.

Mahatma Gandhi was a simple man, with simple tastes and high values. Respecting that, even though Gandhi Jayanti is one of the three official national holidays, the festivities are minimal.

FIR of Mahatma Gandhi s Assassination

When Mahatma Gandhi was shot in the stomach, he died almost immediately. There were thousands of people – family, friends, fans and followers, present at Birla House at the time of his death for the prayer meeting for which Gandhiji was already running late. The Father of Our Nation took his last breath with his hands folded and doing “Pranam” to his assassin Nathuram Ghodse who bowed to him before committing the heinous crime that eventually led him to be punished by death.

Here is an English translation of original F.I.R. of Mahatma Gandhi Assassination case of January 30, 1948.

First Information of a Cognizable Crime Reported under Section 154, Cr.P.C.

Police Station: Tughlak Road

No. : 68

District: Central

Date and hour of occurrence: 30.1.1948 / 5:45 P.M.

Name and residence of informant /complainant: Shri Nand Lal Mehta, son of Shri Natha Lal Mehta, Indian, Building, Lala Suraj Prasad, M Block, Connaught Circus

Brief description of offence (with section) and of property carried off, if any: 302 I.P.C.

Place of occurrence and distance/ direction from Police Station: Birla House, distance 2 furlongs

Name and address of the criminal:

Steps taken regarding investigation/ explanation of delay in recording information:

Today
I was present at Birla House. Around ten minutes past five in the
evening, Mahatma Gandhi left his room in Birla House for the Prayer
Ground. Sister Abha Gandhi and sister Sanno Gandhi were accompanying
him. Mahatma was walking with his hands on the shoulders of the two
sisters. Two more girls were there in the group. I along with Lala Brij
Kishan, a silver merchant, resident of No. 1, Narendra Place, Parliament
Street and Sardar Gurbachan Singh, resident of Timar Pur, Delhi were
also there. Apart from us, women from the Birla household and two-three
members of the staff were also present. Having crossed the garden,
Mahatma climbed the concrete steps towards the prayer place. People were
standing on both the sides and approximately three feet of vacant space
was left for the Mahatma to pass through. As per the custom the Mahatma
greeted the people with folded hands. He had barely covered six or
seven steps when a person whose name I learnt later as Narayan Vinayak
Godse, resident of Poona, stepped closer and fired three shots from a
pistol at the Mahatma from barely 2 / 3 feet distance which hit the
Mahatma in his stomach and chest and blood started flowing. Mahatma ji
fell backwards, uttering “Hey Ram”. The assailant was apprehended on
the spot with the weapon. The Mahatma was carried away in an
unconscious state towards the residential unit of the Birla House where
he passed away instantly and the police took away the assailant.

Sd/-
N.L. Mehta/30.1.1948

Having
received the information I rushed to the Birla House to find the dead
body of the Mahatma at room No. 3. Met Shri Nand Lal Mehta, his
statement recorded and got confirmed after reading it out to him. Copy
of the statement handed over to him. Came to know that the assailant was
whisked away by the Assistant Sub-Inspector. It was a case of Section
302 Indian Penal Code. All the case papers were sent to the Police
Station Tughlak Road and I got engaged in conducting investigations. A
special report may be forwarded through the police station.

Sd. In English/30 January