RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s call for communal harmony — and why we must heed it

To be fair to the editor Prafull Ketkar, the publication is a weekly, and the concerned editorial was written days before the Sarsanghchalak dwelt at length on the issue. Organiser, too, has consistently maintained that it’s an independent publication brought out by Bharat Prakashan, and in the past, there have been instances where the publication has not necessarily toed the line of the ideological fountainhead.

The editorial also starts with a quote from Babasaheb Ambedkar, where he, too, has dwelt at length with the genesis of the Muslim conflict and the psychology guiding the relations between the two major communities in the country.

The editorial doesn’t make any reference to Bhagawat’s speech, nor did the RSS chief refer to the latest controversy surrounding the disputed structure at Sambhal in western UP in his speech. Both Bhagawat and the editorial only reiterate what the organisation has consistently maintained, that the wanton destruction of Hindu temples, the slaughter of men, women and children and the brutalities committed on the women folk were carried out by foreign invaders, who happened to be Muslim. Nowhere has it held the community responsible for the aforementioned heinous acts. On the contrary, the Sangh Parivar as a whole has reaffirmed time and again that the majority of the Muslims in the country had Indian ancestry and were as much victims of the barbaric acts committed by the aliens as much as other native communities. While their belief system remained different, the culture and ethnicity of the second-largest religious community remained predominantly Indian.

Earlier, the RSS had also stated that the DNA of the people of the Subcontinent was the same, and culturally, they were all part of the same nation. Since the British colonial era, the seeds of separatism were deliberately and consciously sown. This was done by inculcating a sense of superiority among Muslims that they were the country’s ruling elite before the Europeans came and were therefore different from the majority Hindu community — which is contrary to facts. The majority of the people, including Muslims, lived pitiable lives and were subjected to the same cruelty by the successive invaders from across Hindukush. In fact, many of them converted to the invaders’ faith out of the fear of the sword, humiliating taxes like jizya and the safety of their women and children. Those who didn’t fall in line paid a heavy price.

This is not to say that some did not convert out of conviction or for convenience. The huge popularity of Sufism in many parts of the country can be attributed to the fact that the Sufis adopted and innovated many Hindu practices to become more acceptable among the converts. The continuance of the caste system among the Muslims, which is peculiarly Indian, is a testimony to their Hindu legacy, while in states like Kashmir, it becomes much more evident with Muslims retaining their old surnames, such as Pandit and Bhatt.

Organiser’s editorial is only an extension of the RSS chief’s call for reconciliation wherein it urges the Muslim community not to identify themselves with the invaders but with their own culture and history. Indonesia, the largest Muslim country in the world, is an example where they have retained their cultural symbols, whether it be Lord Ganesha on their currency notes or Garuda, the vehicle of Lord Vishnu, as their national carrier.

Moreover, the shakhas of the RSS are as open to Muslims as to any other community. The RSS also has a front organisation, Rashtriya Muslim Manch, which has a large number of Muslims adhering to the nationalist ideology.

As pointed out in the editorial, the reservation policy envisioned by Babasaheb was nothing but a reconciliatory step aimed at overcoming the injustices perpetrated on certain communities in what was a perverted interpretation of the Varna system. Does it mean that the so-called upper castes are paying a price for the alleged sins of their forefathers? No, on the contrary. It’s the same castes who have voluntarily supported the act of positive affirmation to bridge the chasm between communities. It is in the same spirit that the Organiser editorial urges the Muslim community not to stake ownership to relics of oppression by the invaders as their own.

When the RSS chief urged people not to look for shivlings beneath every mosque, the call was equally aimed at Muslims to respond to the genuine demands for restoration wherever matters of faith were involved. Also, Bhagwat is equally aware of the nefarious designs of vested interests to bring instability to society and create a civil war-like situation aided and abetted by anti-India forces across the border. As India emerges on the global horizon, a civil strife is the last thing it can afford. Hence, Bhagawat appeals to the elements within the majority community who are out to exploit the situation to gain political leverage.

Instead of looking at the developments, including reactions from some Hindu religious leaders, as a tug of war within the Sangh and outside, the nation’s intelligentsia must seize the opportunity to bring about the much-needed reconciliation between the two communities, without which the nation cannot prosper. I am sure it would not have been easy for Bhagwat to make such bold statements. Rather than critiquing and picking holes and looking for contradictions within (which are natural given the history and legacy), it ought to be seen as a welcome move.

We just cannot afford to pit one against another for temporary political gains. It certainly is a time-consuming exercise, but we need to take the initiative, and the RSS chief’s clarion call is a step in that direction.

The writer is a senior journalist and political commentator