the man who nabbed Godse ~ the killer of Mahatma Gandhi

It is 65 years since…. Much water has flown under the bridge…. Do we really remember or have done justice to all those who fought for the freedom of the Nation and for the good of the Country !!!

It was on this day… 30th Jan – in 1948, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, Father of the Nation was shot while he was walking to a platform from which he was to address a prayer meeting.  The sole assassin, Nathuram Vinayak Godse shot Mahatma in the chest at point blank range and made no attempt to run away.  He was eventually hanged on 15th Nov 1949.   Reports suggest that during his trial, his thesis covered ninety-pages, and he was on his feet for five hours.

This post is not about Mahatma or his killer ~ but of another person involved … an Officer who caught Nathuram Godse and took him to Police Station.  Searching for details, read that the family of late Sergeant Dev Raj Singh Thakur, who chased and caught Mahatma Gandhi's assassin Nathuram Godse at Birla House live in poverty in this Himachal Pradesh town.  Newspaper reports stated that the family has been demanding a government job for a kin of gallantry award winner Thakur for over a decade as there is no breadwinner in the family. [courtesy : Indian Express News Agency]

The report states that the heirs of the officer met the CM in 2010 and pleaded the case for a State Govt job for one of the descendants.  Of Thakur's three sons, the eldest one passed away in 2005 while the other two don't live in Himachal.  Sad to read that Thakur, lost his mental balance during his service in the Indian Air Force, was sent on retirement. He was subsequently admitted to a mental hospital in Amritsar in Punjab where he remained for 14 years. Till his death, Thakur was getting a monthly pension from the central government. The Sainik Welfare Board office in Nahan said Thakur was awarded the gallantry award in 1952 for nabbing Godse by the country's first president. He was on duty at the time of tragedy.

Some reports suggest that the controversial Marathi play ‘Me Nathuram Godse Boltoi.  (I, Nathuram Godse speaking), that created a political furore also brought fore the officer who apprehended him.  Dev Raj Singh Thakur, was a sergeant working in Indian Air Force, received national prominence for apprehending Nathuram Godse.  He was awarded the Ashok Chakra Award, a gallantry award, in 1952 for arresting Godse.  Sadly the family got a measly pension and remain in chill penury…

With regards - S. Sampathkumar

Jan 30th, 2013.