Pune (PTI): The need of the hour was to fight hate and the "violence of thoughts" by inculcating 'ahimsa' (non violence) in our minds and action, Tushar Gandhi, the great grandson of the Mahatma, said on Sunday. He also lamented the "spread of hate" and the direction in which "New India" was moving and said Godse would be the father of such a nation rather than Gandhiji. "The most dangerous violence is the violence of thoughts.

These days, we see that people have something in their hearts but they utter something else. Thus, we need to understand the meaning of ahimsa and inculcate it in our minds," he said "New India is in the making but hate is driving politics, which is a big worry. Even in Maharashtra, we see this hate being spread," he said. There is a need to coin a new slogan 'nafraton Bharat chhodo' and vanquish hate or else it will make citizens its slave, Gandhi said.

"The direction in which New India is moving, the father of the nation will not be Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi but Nathuram Godse (the Mahatma's assassin). We should be worried that hate and grudges are creating new spaces in our minds," he said.

Speaking at a function where he was presented with an award, Gandhi also decried the misconceptions and misinformation about the Mahatma, including a recent statement by a person in authority that the latter never had a degree.

"These days, whenever my mobile phone rings I start thinking about which question about Bapu now remains unanswered. Some 10 days ago, a question was raised over his degree. Several incomprehensible things are circulated about the Mahatma," he said. He also condemned the use of "vadh" by some segments of society for the killing of Gandhiji as this ancient word is employed to describe the slaying of demons and not humans. Gandhiji respected every religion and learnt about them, Tushar Gandhi said, adding people must ensure they live with the right ideals in order to have a bright future.