Kolhapur – Strong demonstrations were held at Shivaji Chowk, Kolhapur, by the Hindu Rashtra Samanway Samiti, alleging that the book ‘Shivaji Kon Hota?’ (Who was Shivaji?), authored by Comrade Govind Pansare, refers to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in the singular and distorts history. The protesters claimed that the book presents a distorted version of Maharaj’s glorious history to the public. A memorandum was submitted to the Office of the Superintendent of Police demanding an immediate ban on the book for presenting incorrect history and hurting religious sentiments. Upon accepting the memorandum, City Deputy Superintendent of Police Priya Patil and Additional Superintendent of Police Dhirajkumar Bachhu assured that necessary action would be taken.
The book ‘Shivaji Kon Hota?’ claims that ‘Goddess Bhavani never gave a sword to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’ and that ‘it is not true that Shivaji achieved success due to his faith in the Hindu religion.’ These claims are entirely contrary to historical evidence. Furthermore, the book rejects the fundamental fact that ‘Hindavi Swarajya’ was Maharaj’s own vision and desire. This is viewed as a well-planned conspiracy for the ‘ideological character assassination’ of a great hero who is the foundation of Hindu identity. Rajmata Jijabai prepared Maharaj to fight against the Mughals by narrating stories from the Ramayana, Mahabharata, and other scriptures. It was because of this that Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj brought down five Sultanates and sent the Mughals to the abode of Yama (death). He built temples at numerous places and became the King of Hindus. Despite this, a completely false image of him is being projected through this book.
Prominent figures present on the occasion included Shri Kishore Ghatge (Deputy District Chief, Shiv Sena), Shri Mahesh Jadhav (BJP), Shri Gajanan Todkar (City President, Hindu Ekta Andolan), Shri Sunil Samant (Founder, Shivshahi Foundation), Vaidya Ashwini Malkar (Arogya Bharati), Dr. Mansing Shinde (Sanatan Sanstha), Shri Niranjan Shinde (Founder, Maharaja Pratishthan), Shri Shivanand Swami (Hindu Janajagruti Samiti), Shri Sambhajirao Bhokare (Deputy District Chief, UBT Sena), Shri Ashok Gurav (Maharashtra Mandir Mahasangh), Sheelatai Mane (Hindu Mahasabha Women’s Wing), Shri Rambhau Methe (Hindu Rashtra Samanvay Samiti), along with a large number of other Hindutva activists.
The protesters have made an assertive demand to the government for an immediate ban on the sale and distribution of this book. The memorandum states that criminal cases should be registered under Sections 299 and 196 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita against publishers and related organizations that fail to remove the singular references to Maharaj. Additionally, a demand was made for the Maharashtra Government to appoint a high-level committee of historians to study every statement in the book. They also requested that not only printed copies but also digital versions and PDF links available on e-commerce sites like Amazon and Flipkart be immediately blocked under cyber laws.