Sangh Parivar's Terror Plot Exposed By Mustafa Khan

Sangh Parivar's Terror Plot Exposed By Mustafa Khan 16 July, 2010 Countercurrents.org With all the startling revelations coming out as a cascade, it will be strange if for the larger interest of the security of India Indresh Kumar and other high ranking RSS chiefs are not put behind prison bars for the sole reason that RSS never stops its execution of its closely guarded plans which can potentially change Indian polity. Such is its cultural nationalism nurtured over the years that it does not want the Muslim minority, perhaps also other minorities, to exist in the country. Indresh Kumar is a member of the central committee of the RSS in charge of the Muslim minority affairs. The RSS cannot allow Muslim to exist as they want, equal to their fellow compatriots. Make no bones about it with the RSS because they are so cussed that they would continue their sophistry believing that you can fool all the people all the time, at least in India. Serving Lt Col Prasad Shrikant Purohit wanted to kill Indresh Kumar and according to his Abhinav Bharat constitution decimate Muslims because they would not be eligible for the Hindu Rashtra he had visualized. Purohit and Indresh Kumar have the same goal. Telling more than this according to the formula of truth of Albert Camus is a lie. To be precise, intended killing of Indresh Kumar is a lie, a white lie, planted to mislead. For, their aim is not mutual destruction. Both have the Hindu Rashtra in their hearts. Even if it is believed for an argument that Purohit and Shyam Apte of Pune had given a gun to one Alok and the Kolkata Hindutva activist Tapan Ghosh on April 11 or 12, 2008, to kill Indresh Kumar; their desire to purge India of Muslims and other minorities does not change. Nor does their capability to wreck havoc in altering the political map of the subcontinent, change. Truth also is the revelation that the medical doctor did want to kill the vice president Hamid Ansari at Jamia Millia in 2007. Creating anarchy is the hidden agenda of the RSS because it is the most secretive and hence most dangerous organization existing in India. Anarchy would lead to the kind of Hindu Rashtra Purohit and RSS envisage. What is the proof that they submit themselves to the Constitution of the Republic of India? When Allan Octavius Hume founded the Indian National Congress in 1885, the viceroy Lord Duffin called it seditious. Indresh Kumar's secret meeting and conversation with all those involved in Malegaon, Ajmer, Mecca masjid and Samjhauta express blasts constitutes just that. It is matched by Purohit's parleying with the Israeli officers seeking recognition and help and diplomatic immunity once the Hindu Rashtra comes into existence. Purohit was busy in recruiting youths into his organization Abhinav Bharat when he was posted at Deolali camp of Nasik, February to September 2005. Does this not constitute sedition, he a serving officer of the Indian army with a hidden Constitution to replace the Constitution of the Republic of India!! Abhinav Bharat had 5000 members across the country then. What has the military thought of the 5000 that the lieutenant colonel had taught and trained? What has the Maharashtra government done about KP Raghuvanshi inviting Purohit to teach and train the Anti Terrorism Squad officers? What has the government of India thought of Praveen Togadia who according to Purhot was actively engaged in the founding and financing of Abhinav Bharat? Why did Togadia want to know from Purohit as to who was investigating the Nanded blast of 2006? What have the investigating agencies done to know why the VHP chief of Maharashtra, one Prashant Hartalkar, was prying into this matter and under whose instruction? Does the Constitution of India allow all such anti-constitutional goings on? The government of India has shown no interest in the only Hindu majority country in the world after India, Nepal. Is this also pseudo secularism for it has not shown any awareness let alone publishing any white paper on the matter recorded by Sudhakar Pandey regarding how Pandey also instructed Purohit to contact Dr R P Singh over the telephone in August 2007. Dr Singh had told "Purohit that Indresh had "sold off Hindus in Nepal". This had fetched Indresh Kumar Rs 3 crore rupees. The money was floated by the ISI. When Purohit conveyed this to Togadia that doughty heart specialist from Gujarat acknowledged that he already knew about it. So the question, whether the government of India knew it? The most wonderful thing for the government of India to know is: how come the RSS and Abhinav Bharat slept over the fact that Malegaon was a rich mine for communal violence till SIMI and the Muslims blew themselves up on September 8, 2006 and only then Abhinav Bharat followed suit on September 29, 2008. (But the itinerary of Togadia shows another direction. He met Purohit in the house of a Nasik VHP leader Vinayak in February 2006, just months before first terrorist attacks in Malegaon. In December 2006 Purohit called upon Togadia in a Mumbai hotel and told him about the details of Abhinav Bharat. Togadia had informed Purohit in March April 2007 of the people who had given funds for Abhinav Bharat. In August-September 2007 Togadia gave Purohit 2 lakh rupees donation for Abhinav Bharat. Then on August 2, 2008 again shortly before the second terrorist attack in Malegaon Togadia and Purhit met. This time Togadia was not happy with Purohit for breaking up the Madhya Pradesh unit of VHP. Thus Togadia and Purohit acted in tandem around the time of both the bomb attacks in Malegaon.)

 

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RSS and 1984: A Glimpse

 

 

Genocide 1984: long search for culprits / RSS angle

By Shamsul Islam

Published in the 16-30 November 2004 print edition of MG

http://www.milligazette.com/dailyupdate/2005/20050811a.htm

 

Full 20 years have elapsed since genocide of Sikhs took place in November 1984. Despite the constitution of innumerable high-power committees, police investigation teams and commissions these are few small fries who have been booked; the real culprits are still eluding the call of justice. The Nanavati Commission which was constituted in 2002 has recently been given another extension till December 2004. The reality is that in last 20 years though the country has been ruled by every shade of political opinion there has been no political will to prosecute the culprits. 

It is generally believed that the Congress cadres were behind this genocide. This may be true but there were other forces too which actively participated in this massacre and whose role has never been investigated. Those who were witness to the genocide of 1984 were stunned by the swiftness and military precision of the killer marauding gangs (later on witnessed during the Babri mosque demolition, burning alive of Dr. Graham Steins with his two sons and recent pogrom of the Muslims in Gujarat) who went on a burning spree of the innocent Sikhs. This was beyond the capacity of the Congress thugs. 

Recently, a crucial document has surfaced which may throw some light on the unhidden aspects of the genocide. It was authored and circulated by a luminary and veteran of the RSS, Nana Deshmukh on November 8, 1984. Interestingly, this document was published in the Hindi Weekly Pratipaksh edited by George Fernandes (Defence Minister of India 1999-2004, and presently a great pal of the RSS) in its edition of November 25, 1984 titled 'Indira Congress-RSS collusion' with the following editorial comment :

"The author of the following document is known as an ideologue and policy formulator of the RSS. After the killing of Prime Minister (Indira Gandhi) he distributed this document among prominent politicians. It has a historical significance that is why we have decided to publish it, violating policy of our Weekly. This document highlights the new affinities developing between the Indira Congress and the RSS. We produce here the Hindi translation of the document."

This document may help in unmasking the whole lot of criminals involved in the massacre of innocent Sikhs who had nothing to do with the killing of Indira Gandhi. This document may also throw light on where the cadres came from, who meticulously organized the killing of Sikhs. Nana Deshmukh in this document is seen outlining the justification of the massacre of the Sikh community in 1984. According to him the massacre of Sikhs was not the handiwork of any group or anti-social elements but the result of a genuine feeling of anger among Hindus of India. 

This document also shows the true degenerated and fascist attitude of the RSS towards all the minorities of India. The RSS has been arguing that they are against Muslims and Christians because they are the followers of foreign religions. Here we find them justifying the butchering of Sikhs who according to their own categorization happened to be the followers of an indigenous religion.

The RSS often poses as a firm believer in Hindu-Sikh unity. But in this document we will hear from the horse's mouth that the RSS like the then Congress leadership, believed that the massacre of the innocent Sikhs was justified. Nana Deshmukh in this document is seen outlining the justification of the massacre of the Sikh community in 1984. His defence of the carnage can be summed up as in the following.

1. The massacre of Sikhs was not the handiwork of any group or anti-social elements but the result of a genuine feeling of anger among Hindus of India. 
   
   

2. Deshmukh did not distinguish the action of the two security personnel of Mrs. Indira Gandhi, who happened to be Sikhs, from that of the whole Sikh community. From his document it emerges that the killers of Indira Gandhi were working under some kind of mandate of their community. Hence attacks on Sikhs were justified. 
   
   

3. Sikhs themselves invited these attacks, thus advancing the Congress theory of justifying the massacre of the Sikhs.
   
   

4. He glorified the 'Operation Blue Star' and described any opposition to it as anti-national. When Sikhs were being killed in thousands he was warning the country of Sikh extremism, thus offering ideological defense of those killings. 
   
   

5. It was Sikh community as a whole which was responsible for violence in Punjab.
   
   

6. Sikhs should have done nothing in self-defence but showed patience and tolerance against the killer mobs.
   
   

7. These were Sikh intellectuals and not killer mobs which were responsible for the massacre. They had turned Sikhs into a militant community, cutting them off from their Hindu roots, thus inviting attacks from the nationalist Indians. Interestingly, Deshmukh would not mind having militant Hindus. Moreover, he treated all Sikhs as part of the same gang and defended attacks on them as a reaction of the nationalist Hindus. 
   
   

8. He described Indira Gandhi as the only leader who could keep the country united and on the killing of such a great leader such killings could not be avoided.
   
   

9. Rajiv Gandhi who succeeded Mrs. Gandhi as the Prime Minister of India and justified the nation- wide killings of Sikhs by saying, "When a huge tree falls there are always tremors felt", was lauded and blessed by Nana Deshmukh at the end of the document.
   
   

10. Shockingly, the massacre of Sikhs was being equated with the attacks on the RSS cadres after the killing of Gandhiji and we find Deshmukh advising Sikhs to suffer silently. Everybody knows that the killing of Gandhiji was inspired by the RSS and the Hindutva Ideology whereas the common innocent Sikhs had nothing to do with the murder of Mrs. Indira Gandhi.
    
    

11. There was not a single sentence in the Deshmukh document demanding, from the then Congress Government at the Centre, remedial measures for controlling the violence against the minority community. Mind this, that Deshmukh circulated this document on November 8, 1984, and from October 31 to this date Sikhs were left alone to face the killing gangs. In fact November 5-10 was the period when the maximum killings of Sikhs took place. Deshmukh was just not bothered about all this.
    

Deshmukh document did not happen in isolation. It represented the real RSS attitude towards Sikh genocide of 1984. The RSS is very fond of circulating publicity material, especially photographs of its khaki shorts- clad cadres doing social work. For the 1984 violence they have none. In fact, Deshmukh's article also made no mention of the RSS cadres going to the rescue of Sikhs under siege. This shows up the real intentions of the RSS during the genocide.

There is not a single sentence in the Deshmukh document demanding, from the then Congress Government at the Centre, remedial measures for controlling the violence against the minority community. Importantly, Deshmukh circulated this document on November 8, 1984, and from October 31 to this date Sikhs were left alone to face the killing gangs. George Fernandes while making this document public in 1984 wrote that it showed 'Indira Congress-RSS collusion'. Nanavati Commission must investigate whether this collusion was confined to political sphere or went beyond to killing fields.

The Deshmukh document is reproduced below. It is translated here from Hindi [parts of the document have been underlined for emphasis]: 

MOMENTS OF SOUL SEARCHING
Indira Gandhi ultimately did secure a permanent place at the doorstep of history as a great martyr. With her dynamism borne out of her fearlessness and dexterity, she was able to take the country forward like a colossus for over a decade and was able to build an opinion that she alone understood the realities of the country, that she alone had the ability to run the decadent political system of our corrupt and divided society, and probably that she alone could keep the country united. She was a great lady and her death as a brave leader had added to her greatness. She was killed by a person in whom she kept faith despite several complaints. Such an influential and busy personality was killed by a person who had the duty to protect her person. This act came as a blow not only to her admirers in the country and the world but also her critics. This cowardly and treacherous act of killing not only ended the life of a great leader but also killed, in the name of the Panth, the mutual faith of humanity. Explosion of sudden arson and violent hysteria throughout the country was probably a direction-less and improper expression of the hurt, anger and feeling of loss of her followers. Lakhs of her followers used to see her as the only defender, powerful protector, and a symbol of united India. It is a different matter whether this is right or wrong.

For these innocent and uninformed followers, the treacherous murder of Indira Gandhi was the tragic culmination of the poisonous campaign of separatism, antagonism and violence conducted over the previous three years in which hundreds of innocents had to lose their invaluable lives and the sanctity of religious places was destroyed. This campaign assumed an ominous pace after the painful army action in June which, in the eyes of most of the people of the country, had become necessary to protect the sanctity of the religious places. Barring a few exceptions, the Sikh community observed silence for a long time on the barbaric massacres and heinous killings of innocent people, but they condemned the long-pending army action with anger and dangerous explosiveness. The country was stunned at their attitude. The army action was compared to the "gallu ghara" action of Ahmed Shah Abdali in 1762 to desecrate the Harmandir Sahib. Without going into the objectives of the two incidents, Mrs. Gandhi was pushed into the category of Ahmed Shah Abdali. She was termed the enemy of the Sikh panth and big prizes were announced on her head. On the other hand Bhindrawale who was guilty of heinous crimes against humanity in the name of religion was hailed as a martyr. Open display of such feelings in different parts of the country and abroad played a special role in increasing the distrust and alienation between the Sikhs and the rest of Indians. In the background of this distrust and alienation, stunned and bewildered people accepted the validity of the rumours of celebrations by the Sikhs at the heinous murder of Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards in retaliation of the army action. Of these the most hurting explanation was that of Giani Kripal Singh who being the Head Granthi considered himself to be the sole spokesman of the Sikh community. He said that he expressed no sorrow at the death of Indira Gandhi. This statement added fuel to the fire of boiling anger. No immediate and natural condemnation of this despicable statement by an important leader came from responsible Sikh leaders, intellectuals or organization. Therefore the already angered common and unimaginative people took it as correct that the Sikhs celebrated the death of Indira Gandhi. Because of this belief, selfish elements could succeed in making the common people become violent against the hapless Sikhs.

This was a most explosive situation which needed utmost patience and skilful conduct on behalf of our Sikh brothers. I am saying this, being a life member of the RSS, because on January 30, 1948 a Hindu fanatic, who was a Marathi and had no relation with the RSS, rather was a bitter critic of the Sangh, committed unfortunate killing of Mahatma Gandhi. On this occasion we also suffered the sudden eruption of hysteria, loot and atrocities of misdirected people. We ourselves saw how selfish elements who were well acquainted with this incident, deliberately declared a murderer to be a member of the RSS and also spread the rumour that the RSS people were celebrating throughout the country death of Mahatma Gandhi, and thus they succeeded in diverting the love and the feeling of loss and hurt in the hearts of people for Gandhi. Such feelings were spread against Swayamsewaks and their families, particularly in Mahrashtra.

Having gone through such experiences myself, I can understand the strong reaction and feeling of innocent Sikh brothers who became of victims of sudden eruption of people's violent hysteria. In fact, I would like to condemn in strongest words the inhuman barbarity and cruelty on Sikh brothers in Delhi and elsewhere. I feel proud of all those Hindu neighbours who protected lives and property of troubled Sikh brothers without caring for their lives. Such things one being heard from all over Delhi. These things have practically increased the faith in natural goodness of human behavior and particularly faith in Hindu nature.

I am also worried at the Sikh reaction in such delicate and explosive situation. As an activist engaged in national reconstruction and unity for half a century and being a well wisher of Sikh community I am hesitating in saying that if reactive armed action by Sikhs is even partly true then they have not been able to evaluate the situation correctly and comprehensively and as a result could not respond according to the situation. Here I wish to draw the attention of all my countrymen including Sikhs that in a similar difficult situation arising out of murder of Mahatma Gandhi when in the hysteria against the RSS crimes of destruction of property, heinous burning alive of children, inhuman cruelty etc. were being committed and the news was reaching Nagpur from all over India, then the 'dictator' of the RSS known as the so-called big private army, the then head of the Sangh late M.S. Golwalkar issued an appeal in Nagpur on February 1, 1948 to the lakhs of armed young followers throughout the country in the following unforgettable words:

'I direct all my Swayamsewak brothers that despite spread of provocation due to lack of understanding, they should adopt cordial attitude towards all and remember that this mutual distrust and improper hysteria is the result of the love and respect that the whole country has for Mahatma who made the country great in the eyes of the world. We salute such great respected departed soul'.

These were not empty words to hide cowardice and helplessness in the hopeless situation. In those life threatening serious moments he proved that every word of his appeal had a meaning. On the evening of February 1, hundreds of Swayamsewaks in Nagpur urged for armed resistance and resisting till the last drop of their blood to stop the probable attack on their leader the same night. And some associates of Guruji told him of a conspiracy against his life and requested to shift his residence to a safe place before the attack, Guruji told them in such a black moment also that if the same people whom he had truly and with full ability, served throughout his life wanted to take his life, then why and for whom he should save his life. Thereafter he cautioned them in stern voice that even if a drop of blood of his countrymen was shed in saving him, then such a life would be useless for him. History is a witness that lakhs of Swayamsewaks spread throughout the country followed this directive word by word. Though they had to digest vulgarities in exchange of their patience and tolerance but there was a faith to give them patience that whatever may happen to them in present condition, history will definitely prove them innocent.

I hope that in present difficult situation my Sikh brothers will also show the above-referred patience and tolerance. But I am deeply pained to know that rather than displaying such tolerance and patience at some places they have retaliated against the crowd with arms and played into the hands of such selfish elements who were eager to spread the trouble. I am surprised how a section of our society considered to be most disciplined, organized and religious, adopted such a negative and self-defeating attitude. May be they could not get proper leadership at the moments of such a crisis. Through my scanty study and understanding of Sikh history I consider that such a nonpolitical reaction of Sikhs in moments of such a crisis came from their complete involvement with teachings of love, tolerance and sacrifice of Sikh nature. Warrior nature of Sikh religion was a short time provision against barbarity of foreign Mughals which was taught by tenth Guru. For him Khalsa was a relatively small part of a broad Hindu-Sikh brotherhood and was designed as an armed hand to defend Hindu community and its traditions. Guru Govind Singh laid down for Khalsa followers five KS (Kesh, Kripan, Kangha, Kara and Kachha) and 'Singh' in the name of Khalsas. This was a symbol of their being soldiers. But unfortunately today these only are being projected as basic and necessary forms of Sikh religion.

I am sorry to say that Sikh intellectuals too have failed to understand that conversion of Sikh religion into Khalsaism is a much later event and this was due to deliberate plan of British imperialists to divide and rule in Punjab. Its aim was to cut the Sikhs off from their Hindu environ. Unfortunately, after independence power hungry politicians kept alive for their own interest the unnaturally born problems of separation and equal existence, and carried forward the game of imperialists to divide and rule by their vote bank politics. This improper equating of Sikhs with militant Khalsaism is not only the basic root of separatist tendencies in some parts of Sikh community, but it also raised militancy and faith in the power of weapons to the level of religious worship.

This religious worship gave rise to terrorist movement like Babbar Khalsa in the second decade and recently Indira Gandhi was killed as a result of 
terrorist wave under the leadership of Bhindrawale and a long 'hit list' is yet to be executed.

I used to imagine that Sikh community has freed itself totally from illiteracy, ignorance, frustration and defeatism in which it was in the fifth decade of 19th century after losing its freedom and which was exploited by cunning British imperialists and selfish Sikh elites for their selfish interests. It is clear that in eighth decade Sikhs adorning the places of high responsibility represent highly educated, laborious, vigilant, relatively rich, enlightened and active section of Indian society in every walk of life. In nineteenth century their experiences and vision was limited to the boundaries of the then Punjab but today they are spread not only throughout India but throughout the world, and they are in a situation to directly know the conspiracies of big powers which are being hatched against independent and united India rising strongly in the world. In such an advantageous situation they should know their historical development as an integral part of India.

Such a revaluation of history will give them the opportunity to see many wrong formulations of their own religion and past which has been systematically drilled into their brains by wrong and distorted historical writings by British administrators and intellectuals about nature and development of their religion. Such an attempt will take them to their real roots.

This is the time that our Sikh brothers should search their hearts so that they can get rid of the false description inserted by British imperialists and power greedy opportunist people into their basic religious nature. Removal of such false descriptions is necessary to bridge the gulf of distrust and alienation between two communities of similar destiny, nature and similar traditions. I am afraid that without such a self-introspection and revaluation of history they would not be able to live with peace among themselves and with other countrymen. A disinterested analysis of their own enlightened interests will be enough to make them understand that their fate is indivisibly linked with the destiny of India. Such an understanding will save them from falling prey to the disruptive and destructive interests of foreign powers.

I disbelieve (sic) that my Sikh brothers will accept the cautious words of spiritual expression of a well-wisher.

Lastly, it is not to deny the truth that sudden removal of Indira Gandhi from Indian political scene has created a dangerous void in the Indian common life. But India has always displayed a characteristic inner strength in the moments of such crisis and uncertainty. According to our traditions, responsibility of power has been placed on the inexperienced shoulders of relatively young person in a lively and peaceful manner. It will be hasty to judge the potentialities of his leadership at this time. We should give him some time to show his ability.

On such challenging juncture of the country, in the meanwhile he is entitled to get full cooperation and sympathy from the countrymen, though they may belong to any language, religion, caste or political belief.

In the capacity of a nonpolitical constructive worker I only hope and pray that God bless him with more mature, balanced, inner strength and ability to give an impartial Govt. to the people so that he can take the country to real prosperous unity and glory.

Guru Nanak Divas
November 8, 1984
Nana Deshmukh

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Time to look back to "Veer" Savarkar's contribution to freedom campatign ...!

 

----- Original Message -----

From: Dr. H.U. Qureshi

 

Following are only some of the (hundreds of) links that tell a story different from what we have been told and/or made to believe:

 

http://www.rediff.com/news/2003/mar/15arvind.htm

 

http://koenraadelst.voiceofdharma.com/articles/fascism/savarkarnazi.html

 

http://www.milligazette.com/dailyupdate/2005/20050819.htm

 

http://www.countercurrents.org/comm-chand300603.htm

 

http://pd.cpim.org/2002/june30/06302002_sarvarkar.htm

 

http://www.ndfindia.com/content/view/138/

 

http://www.wrmea.com/archives/October_2003/0310032.html

Golwalkar: the brain of RSS

 

Golwalkar: the brain of RSS 

By Kashif Hoda

The Milli Gazette Online

26 February 2006

http://www.milligazette.com/dailyupdate/2006/20060226_Golwalkar_RSS.htm

RSS is planning to celebrate birth centenary of the second RSS chief Madhavrao Sadashivrao Golwalkar. While K. B. Hedgewar is responsible for setting up RSS and the initial leadership, it was the genius of Golwalkar that firmly established RSS in the Indian political scene. It was he who developed most of the strategies that are still in use by RSS. He gave RSS the vision that still inspires its cadre.

Therefore to understand RSS it is important to understand Golwalkar and his teachings. Golwalkar was born in 1906 near Nagpur. He entered Banaras Hindu University in 1906, got his B.Sc. degree in 1926, M.Sc. in Zoology in 1928. He joined BHU as a teacher and worked there till 1933. Golwalkar was very apolitical in his student life; the only political activity before he joined RSS in 1931 was to meet Hedgewar in 1929. Exactly what led him to get involved in politics to such a degree in a short span of two years, to resign from his job and move to Nagpur, is a mystery.

Hedgewar worked on his new disciple to train him for a future leadership role. Meanwhile, Golwalkar got himself enrolled into Nagpur University to study law, getting his LLB degree in 1935. Probably the militaristic routine of RSS was unable to satisfy the intellectual and spiritual need of Golwalkar, in 1937 we find him leaving RSS to move to Bengal and become a disciple of Swami Akhandana at Sargachi. Just a few months later, Swami dies, and a confused Golwalkar goes back to Hedgewar. He remained attached to his Swami's mission all his life though, he never cut his hair and beard as instructed by the Swami.

Golwalkar accompanied Hedgewar in all his trips to set up shakhas in different places. Golwalkar was trained and his personality built up so that he could become an acceptable leader. In 1938 A book comes out "We or Our Nationhood Defined." It was supposed to be written by Golwalkar, and was a clear attempt to raise his profile. Later Golwalkar himself admitted that it was an abridged translation of another book in Marathi.

During Hedgewar's final days, when he was too sick to travel, it was Golwalkar who took care of business associated with RSS, and took complete charge of the organization. Therefore, it is not surprising that in 1940, bypassing some senior leaders who were with RSS since the beginning, Golwalkar was made head of RSS.

Golwalkar is the longest serving chief of RSS and also may be the most successful in terms of increasing membership and establishing shakhas. Hedgewar left RSS with about 50 shakhas and 100,000 members and when Golwalkar died he had expanded its reach to 10,000 shakhas and membership running above a million.

RSS under Hedgewar was resigned to its status of a junior member of the Hindu Right, playing second fiddle to Hindu Mahasabha. Mahasabha leaders didn't treat them as much more than a youth organizer with no mass movement or vision for the future. In fact, V. D. Savarkar commented that "the epitaph for the RSS volunteer will be that he was born, he joined the RSS and he died without accomplishing anything."

Hedgewar developed his organization as a street-fighting machine; cadres were well trained to fight the "enemy" and enhance passions by the disinformation campaign. RSS continues to be a master of the rumor industry, but inspite of their emphasis on physical training, there is little evidence that RSS members get involved in actual physical fights. Lower caste communities are utilized to do the dirty work of rioting once they have been initiated. The credit for this transformation goes to Hedgewar.

Soon after taking over RSS, Hedgewar tried to make it a separate identity from Hindu Mahsabha. The RSS as a result became more anti-Socialist than Mahasabha, while maintaining its anti-Muslim stance. This expanded its social base to include all the people who lose from any radical social change. That increased its membership as well as giving it financial security. While most of India was revolting in a peaceful way against the British occupation, RSS chose a non-confrontational approach. For them being patriotic had nothing to do with being anti-British.

In his book "Bunch of Thoughts," Golwalkar writes that "the theories of territorial nationalism and of common danger, which formed the basis for our concept of nation, had deprived us of the positive and inspiring content of our real Hindu Nationhood and made many of the 'freedom movements' virtually anti-British movements. Anti-Britishism was equated with patriotism and nationalism. This reactionary view has had disastrous effects upon the entire course of the freedom movement, its leaders and the common people." It is really ironic that this is the same organization that now treats Subhash Chandra Bose as a patriot who was clearly anti-British in his approach and did not mind taking the assistance of Germany and Japan to fight the common enemy.

RSS these days have turned anti-Christian but they were never anti-British, in fact RSS tried to channelize the nation's anti-British feelings into anti-Muslim sentiments. The youthful energy of the members was kept busy by occasional clashes with the Muslims. The British Government must have been happy that scores of youth were kept out of the freedom movement.

It is possible that RSS was hand-in-glove with the British Government in their plan to keep their cadre outside the freedom movement. We find that RSS accepted all the restrictions placed on it by the government of the time. The khaki shirt was replaced by the white shirt because it was similar to the military uniform; canvas shoes replaced leather boots and the belt was dropped altogether. RSS preferred Anti-Muslim sentiments in place of Anti-British.

While the Indian leadership was in prison because of the quit Indian Movement, RSS laid the foundation stone of Hedgewar Bhawan in 1945. It was completed in less than a year's time. Its compound is big enough to hold an assembly of 9000 RSS men. This lavish construction comes on the heel of the Bengal famine, for which RSS, a voluntary organization, was not involved in helping the people. In fact RSS did nothing to stop the partition of 'Akhand Bharat', which puts them in the same group with the Muslim League, as the group who favored the two-nation theory.

It is difficult to imagine what was going through the mind of Golwalkar at that tumultuous time in Indian history; it must have taken a lot of effort not to be active. Nathuram Godse, who used to accompany Hedgewar in his travels, killed Mahatma Gandhi. The ban on RSS was a difficult time on its organizational history, it exposed the weakness of the Organization, and all this time the emphasis was on physical exercise and creating an army of clones. RSS found little support in its effort to revoke the ban. It was able to gather only nine lakh signatures to petition the government.

Failing in its effort to launch a movement against the ban, Golwalkar started to use lobbying to get the ban removed. After coming out of the ban, RSS started infiltrating different sectors by launching their own organizations (eg. student organizations, trade unions, and farmers unions). About 50 front-organizations were created to cover different sectors of the society. Clashes with China in 1957-59 gave RSS a platform to come out of hibernation. RSS started many campaigns against cow-slaughter, the Urdu language, and formation of the Malappuram District in Kerala etc.

Jawaharlal Nehru was very much against lifting the ban against RSS, but towards the end of his career, Nehru initiated the process of making peace with RSS. Lads of Golwalkar were invited to join Republic day parade in 1963. That was the first and the last time that they were part of the Republic day parade, but it was a nice propaganda tool for RSS.

The atmosphere of the 1965 war with Pakistan was fertile for RSS growth. On the eve of the 1967 election, RSS mobilized the various Hindu organizations to stage a massive anti-cow-slaughter demonstration outside Parliament in November 1966. This movement coupled with Congress' inaction lead to a major defeat for the Congress and many RSS men became ministers in many of the north-Indian states. This brought another chapter for RSS, which enabled them to use state machinery to promote the cause of RSS.

But apparently they grew too fast and were unable to cope with their success. Indira Gandhi's shrewdness and defeat of the Pakistani army in Bangladesh made RSS ineffective. RSS works better under the environment of fear. The strong leadership style of Indira Gandhi confused RSS strategists, and thus the death of Golwalkar in July 1973 left behind a demoralized organization. In spite of this his legacy lives on, directions and strategies that he gave to this organisation are still followed by RSS.

In brief, this was the public life of the second RSS chief Golwalkar. The evil design planted by him continues to give fruit. In this centenary year there will be many articles praising Golwalkar, and as is the style of RSS, they will be re-writing history to show us how great a leader he was. To understand Golwalkar, we have to cut the hype and simply have to read his words as follows:

 

On caste system:

"There is nothing to prove that it (the caste system) ever hindered our social developments. Actually caste system has helped to preserve the unity of our society." (Bunch of Thoughts p.108)

"The history proves that Mohammadan could win over North West and north east areas easily where Budhism had shattered the pattern of caste system. Gandhar which is Kandhar now, was converted to Islam completely. But contrary to this, Hindu religion was strong in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh despite Muslim rule because caste system was strictly followed there. (Bunch of Thoughts]

 

On Nationhood:

"When we say, "This is the Hindu nation", there are some who immediately come up with the question, "What about the Muslims and Christians dwelling in this land? Are they also not born and bred here? How could they become aliens just because they have changed their faith? But the crucial point is whether they remember that they are the children of this soil? .... No. Together with the change in their faith, gone are the spirit of love and devotion for the nation." (Bunch of Thoughts)

 

Solution to the Minority 'problem':

"The foreign races in Hindustan must either adopt the Hindu culture and language, must learn to respect and hold in reverence Hindu religion, must entertain no idea but those of the glorification of the Hindu race and culture, i.e., of the Hindu nation and must lose their separate existence to merge in the Hindu race, or may stay in the country, wholly subordinated to the Hindu Nation, claiming nothing, deserving no privileges, far less any preferential treatment - not even citizen's rights. There is, at least, should be, no other course for them to adopt. We are an old nation; let us deal, as old nations ought to and do deal, with the foreign races, who have chosen to live in our country. (We or Our Nationhood Defined)

"German race-pride has now become the topic of the day. To keep up with the purity of the race and its culture, Germany shocked the world by her purging the country of the Semitic races- the Jews. Race pride at its highest has been manifested here. Germany has also shown how well-nigh impossible it is for Races and Cultures, having differences going to the root, to be assimilated into one united whole, a good lesson for use in Hindusthan to learn and profit by" (We or Our Nationhood Defined)

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