Can a one day hero be villain otherwise

Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, a Hindu sanyasi, has recently come into limelight for her statements against Hemant Karkare, a policeman who died during 26/11. An ABVP activist in her college days, Sadhvi Pragya always had an affinity for right-wing politics since her childhood.

She has become the latest figure of controversy due to her remarks about former Joint Commissioner of Police and Maharashtra ATS chief Hemant Karkare. In a recent statement, she claims to have cursed Hemant Karkare and according to her, that led to his death. “Tera sarvanash hoga” (you will be destroyed) is the sharp (curse) she is said to have given to Karkare for allegedly torturing her while she was in custody. She soon had to retract her statement and apologized, although she only claimed to do so because the “enemies of the country were being benefited from it”.

It all started when Hemant Karkare led the investigations into the 2008 Malegaon blasts case where he tracked down the owner of the motorcycle used in the attacks. The motorcycle belonged to Sadhvi Pragya who was given a clean chit by the National Investigation Agency in May 2016.

Sadhvi Pragya, who is out on bail, has been fielded by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to contest the 2019 Lok Sabha elections from Madhya Pradesh’s Bhopal. After a disturbing fallout with people due to her controversial statement about the late policeman, she shared her side of the story when she broke down into tears during a press conference. Recounting her torture in Jail she said she would be beaten up throughout the night and denied food for days. “I was made to survive on just water for several days.” Although her background is at best sketchy, the question of torture raised by Sadhvi is, however, relevant. Policemen are in the habit of using third-degree torture methods on captives in their custody. According to research and news reports (Sept 2017-June 2018) available on the internet, almost 122 incidents of custodial torture has been registered. Of 122 incidents, 30 cases have resulted in the deaths of the prisoners. Police torture is not limited to adults, In many cases, children under 18 have been forcefully beaten up or physically assaulted even for the basest of charges like theft. Amidst such reports of torture, one must at least question the motives of the late ATS chief while handling the case of the accused.

Many people from the BJP cadre, including PM Modi and Amit Shah, have come in support of Sadhvi Pragya. The officer who was cremated with national honors like the Ashok chakra is now facing flak as many supporters of Pragya Thakur’s supporters as well as independent observers questioned if the former ATS chief deserved the award. Just because he’s a martyr doesn’t automatically make him a hero. In fact, many others in the army have questioned the gallantry award system concluding it to be flawed and in need of urgent reforms.

Before judging Sadhvi Pragya’s statement to be controversial, as citizens of a democratic nation that believes every voice must be heard, we also must look at both sides of the matter before making any judgments.

The saffron-robed history post-graduate who worked with the student wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and Durga Vahini, the women’s wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad filed her nomination on April 23rd in Bhopal, which will vote on May 12.