MEERUT, India — Under the shade of a banyan tree, a group of worshipers recite Sanskrit mantras. Then they start walking, hands folded, as if in a trance, toward a statue. But the rise of a Hindu nationalist government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has uncorked many extremist beliefs, and admiration for Gandhi’s killer, among some, has become more open. It is a sign of how much India has changed in the five and a half years since Mr. Modi took power. “Gandhi was a traitor,” said Pooja Shakun Pandey, who blames Gandhi for partition and who participated in a recent ceremony worshiping Mr. Godse on the anniversary of Gandhi’s assassination.

Source: New York Times February 04, 2020 19:18 UTC