FOCUS
RSS-
What is the truth!
Most Indians who do not like BJP and its Pariwar,
and all those who are with BJP and its Pariwar, know that RSS stands for Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh, which in English roughly means, National Voluntary
Organization. So RSS also shall mean NVO. And there are also Indians and even
foreigners who know only the acronym and not its elongated form still dislike
& hate it because, all its members are Hindus although there are both
Muslims and Christians, may be few in number, compared to Hindus.
In trying to understand the rationale of opposition,
dislike or hatred for RSS, if it was called as NVO or National Voluntary
Organization, perhaps the opposition, dislike or hatred to this NVO, even as
part of BJP family, could have been far more tempered. Reason for this
reasoning is RSS is a Hindi set of words, which is an Indian language, but NVO
is an English set of words and therefore could have been better received, if
not accepted.
Be that as it may, RSS is an organization
established on 27th September 1925, that is some 93 years ago. So
RSS will complete 100 years in another 7 years or so. It is reportedly the
largest voluntary organization in the entire world of homo sapiens, with
membership of over 10,000,000 with over 60,000 branches all over India. Clearly
it has spread far and wide within the geographical area of India. For whatever
reasons, it is perceived as anti Muslim. But in public space there is a clear dislike
and hatred from both Muslims and Christians. With lingual facility Christians’
usage of words are more sharp and hateful especially in social media.
Surprisingly I have not come across any RSS member rebutting these hatred or
paying back the compliments of hate mongers. If one is itching for a duel, the
other side apparently is ignoring the bait, at least there appears to be no
tension in the air with so much hatred poured out on different media platforms.
In the atmosphere of ongoing onslaught on RSS, for
former President Pranab Mukherjee to accept to be a guest of honour in a
passing out parade of RSS cadres did make its expected tremor within a section
of liberal intellectuals in general and Congress Party in particular. Congress
Party employed just about anybody, including his daughter, to dissuade Pranab
Mukherjee from gracing the function at RSS head quarters in Nagpur.
In the event, it was a kind of an anti-climax. There
was no earthquake. He made some staid speech with worn out phrase of pluralism
and secularism etc. On their part RSS leadership took it up with equally staid
response. But their purpose of calling the former president was believed to
have been achieved. Pranab Mukherjee is a Congressman of over 50 years affiliation.
For such a person to have accepted to grace a function and make a speech, has
certainly lent credibility to RSS, which was a whipping horse for most
opposition parties, with Congress being its biggest and relentless critic. Like
senior commentator TR Ramachandran puts it “By going to Nagpur, Mukherjee has
shown that he is a Gandhian and that nobody is a pariah or an untouchable”.
This, to a great extent is true. Besides, he was not the first of those VIPs
who mattered, visited RSS head quarters in Nagpur. In the past, important
dignitaries without any previous connections with Sangh have graced RSS
functions. They were Mahatma Gandhi, Jaya Prakash Narayan, General Cariappa, to
name some.
According to available information, visiting an RSS
rally in Delhi on 16.9.1947, Mahatma Gandhi had remarked “When I visited the
RSS camp, I was very much impressed by its discipline and the complete absence
of untouchability”.
In May 1939, Dr BR Ambedkar had remarked “I am
surprised to find Swayamsevaks moving about in absolute equality and
brotherhood without ever caring to know the caste of others” while on his visit
to RSS Pune Camp.
TR Ramachandran informs, “Considering RSS role in
the 1962 war against China, Nehru invited RSS to participate in the Republic Day
Parade”. So why many of its detractors and critics have dubbed RSS ‘fascist’?
Most of the contemporary criticism stems from the
fact of Nathuram Godse, a former member of RSS having Mahatma Gandhi shot dead
on 30th January 1948. In fact the current president of Congress, Rahul
Gandhi, ill equipped with inadequate information and some preconceived notion
has accused RSS as the killers of Mahatma Gandhi. And Indians are privy to the
knowledge that RSS has taken Rahul Gandhi to court for defamation.
Thus the question persists, why there is so much
dislike or hatred of RSS among some so-called liberal Hindus and of course
Muslims and Christians of India?
There are arguments thrown up accusing RSS as not
having taken part in independence movement. Although, RSS do not seem to
dismiss that they did not take part in the independence movement, their
contention was that they didn’t want RSS to be banned by the Britishers, but
there were many members of RSS who took part in the independence movement at
individual level, including Dr. Hedgewar, the principal architect of RSS.
Thus there is no clarity about what wrong RSS have
really committed to attract so much attack from all and sundry. Coming to the
issue of perceived enmity of RSS towards Muslims there appears to be some
complex turn of events. Most important of them is the Khilafat movement where
Congress joined hands with Khilafat committee to promote the cause of Indian
independence and the movement to save Caliphate in Turkey. Prima facie, the
objective of this association looked rather weird. Although due to this
Hindu/Muslim unity for independence seems to have worked for some time. But
political developments in Turkey led to the establishment of a secular
government under Kamal Ata Turk, who abolished Caliphate. This greatly
disappointed Indian Muslims and their association with Hindus in India broke
up. According to one source they were not comfortable with peaceful movement of
Mahatma Gandhi and they killed some 22 policemen in Chauri Chaura, sometime in
1922. Soon thereafter there was religious violence between Hindus and Muslims.
According to details available Hindus suffered a great deal of life and
property. This led to churning among Hindu leadership which greatly yearned for
better organization among Hindus. RSS started by Dr. Keshav Baliram Hedgewar,
was the culmination of these developments. Idea was to counter Muslim
aggressiveness and develop Hindu self defense, they aver.
Dr. Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, a medical doctor, is
reputed to have established this Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in 1925, in the
Central Indian City of Nagpur. Born on 1st April 1889, young Keshav
was a deeply committed man, to his ideal of a free and prosperous India. Being
a staunch Hindu, he was convinced, seeing the things around him in his prime
that Hindus lack self-respect, unity and cohesion among themselves. Although,
he was involved in Congress Party activities, he was a worried man about the
lot of Hindus in a country that had over 80% Hindus those days. Thus, he is
reported to have written in his diary “Mutual distrust and ill-will, personal
and caste rivalries, Brahmin and non-Brahmin controversy have all raised their
ugly heads. No organization or institution seem to be free from these internal
squabbles and utter lack of discipline”
Inspired by the speeches of Swami Vivekananda young
Keshav dreamt of realizing Swami Vivekananda’s India, where everyone is bold,
strong and self-confident. This, Keshav Hedgewar felt, was not possible through
Congress and therefore thought of a separate organization that would have its
own objectives. The thought that a handful of British were able to rule over a
vast country like India, was very disturbing to Hedgewar.
Many political and social developments made his
resolve tougher to organize Hindus as a cohesive, disciplined force thinking
about the nation first. Thus was born Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. In early
days, there was a desire of making India a Hindu Rashtra or Nation of Hindus,
which over the years appears to have toned down.
Franklin Monteiro, a practicing Roman Catholic
Christian of Mangalooru, is all gaagaa about his association with R.S.S. According
to him he joined the local Shakha (branch of RSS) as a child, involved
basically in games, drills, exercise etc. He is an active member of RSS since
over 40 years. ‘I was never made to feel as an alien in the crowd of all
Hindus. No questions were raised about the religion of participants even once.
In fact, I was allowed to attend to all my Church obligations first and then to
the Shakha activities’ was his considered stand.
According to him, what he admired and greatly
respects is the utmost importance RSS gives to nationalism and patriotism. ‘No
God or religion was ever mentioned in our interactions’, he avers. ‘This land
has given us so much, what are we giving back to this land is a question all
must ask and make honest attempt to give back as much as we can’, tells Franklin,
clearly inspired by the ideals of RSS. He even recited a prayer in Sanskrit
Namaste
Sada Vatsale Matrubhume
Tvayā
Hindubhūme Sukhaṁ Vardhitoham
Mahāmaṅgale
Puṇyabhūme Tvadarthe
Patatveṣha
Kāyo Namaste Namaste ||
Meaning:
Our
beloved motherland, we bow to you forever. Oh Great Nation, The sacred realm,
we were brought up here with your immense care, love and nourishment. We
dedicate the whole of ourselves to your service forever. Millions and millions
of Pranams.
The way he recited this prayer it was very clear
that he is very happy being associated and involved in the activities of RSS.
As an extention to this involvement, Franklin has started “RASHTRIYAWADI
CHRISTHA VEDIKE, meant to promote nationalist movements within Christian
community of Mangalooru.
He tells ‘RSS is another name for Nationalism and it
is the vested interest groups which are trying very hard to bring bad name to
RSS’. “This is my fervent appeal to all those who do not agree with RSS to
spend with us just one day and then form the opinion” was his emotional plea.
Of course it is also true that over the years RSS
has undergone many changes especially its political leanings. The present day
political leadership has, especially from BJP, hundreds of active RSS members.
Right from the Prime Minister of the country to an ordinary village panchayat
member, RSS has made inroads. Hence the opposition may be strident toward RSS
due to this politics. It is also true that political power has, to an extent,
disturbed the sense of proportion of some of its members, who are emboldened to
mouth anything and everything as if they are in the know of all-a Sarvajna or an
omniscient. These motor mouths among RSS do create completely avoidable
controversies. There are also those who have taken the law into their hands to
become violent, like ‘Cow Vigilantes’. It is very important that parent
organization, RSS has to take the call to address this wayward behavior of its
members-both in words and deeds, to reclaim its own claim as selfless servants
of India. Some of the happenings in the country would surely be most
disappointing to the soul of Dr. Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, who dreamt of a fair
society when he established Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
The recent trolling by some of its members on Sushma
Swaraj, Minister of External Affairs, for giving a passport to an inter-faith
couple is a case in point. Of course, while it could be opportunistic for
Congress to come to the rescue of Sushma Swaraj, at least it did show some
decency to help a lady in distress. This was in complete contrast to what Sangh
Pariwar members decided to do. In the face of attack on Sushma Swaraj, one of
their very own, a competent and truly working minister, and a woman at that,
reportedly there was nobody who came to stand by her. This is not merely deeply
disappointing, but also deeply disturbing. How small some people can get!
Thus while it can be safely said that there are many
positive aspect of RSS, it will not be wrong to say that there are disturbing
dimensions of this mammoth organization which it needs to address to be better
acceptable to not just Muslims & Christians but to the vast majority of
Hindus in India.
Of course, it is true that it has made inroads into
Muslim and Christian section of Indian society, by having Rashtriya Muslim
Manch and Rashtriya Isai Manch to take them along for a better India. It is
also true that RSS was greatly involved in situations of natural calamities
like flood, earthquake and wherever it could address human suffering. It has
the potential to organize large group of volunteers in short notice to be ready
to go to any place where there is need for multi-dimensional help. RSS has
proved its mettle in responding to calls of distress in different parts of India,
many times in the past. With such credentials it should have been easier to be
accepted by the Pan-Indian sections of different background. It is also true
that, there are sections within Indian society, who are biased towards it with
their own pre-conceived notion about the IDEA OF INDIA. It is in this context
the visit of President Pranab Mukherjee has to be seen. His visit has certainly
helped at least fence sitters to look at RSS little more differently for the
general good of India. And media reported that since the visit of Pranab
Mukherjee, membership to RSS has improved over and above the daily normal interest.
Hope in a society that is divided on communal leanings is bridged instead
towards a lasting social harmony.
J. Shriyan
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