Ram Puniyani
(Asian independent) “Hindu Society Nation’s Responsible Core- Sangh seeks to unite Hindu Society, as it is the Hindu Society…that carries the responsibility of Nation” (Mohan Bhagwat, Indian Express, Mumbai Edition, Feb 17, 2025) These are the words of Mr. Mohan Bhagwat, the chief of RSS. He was addressing the RSS Workers in Bardhaman, West Bengal. Further he states that “Hindus are those who embody India’s characteristics and keep its diverse population united.”
Mr. Bhagwat is on a ten day tour in West Bengal. This formulation is not only in contrast to what the Indian Constitution stands for but is also totally the opposite of what the history of this country tells us. As per Constitution “we” the people of India is a religion neutral word and stands for all the people of this country irrespective of their religion. In contrast to RSS ideology, the Constitution of India looks at people of all religions having equal rights and responsibilities in the country.
There is a big attempt by the ideologues supportive of RSS’s Hindu Rashtra ideology to undermine and reject the diversity of religions of this country. The lovely word standing for our mixed culture, ‘Ganga Jamuni Tehjeeb’, is criticized by RSS acolytes and it is asserted that this is a distortion of the Hindu culture which prevailed here all through.
To begin with, the word Hindu itself was coined by those who crossed the Sindhu River, centuries ago. As word S was pronounced less often by them, instead H was used by them so it is the word Hindu. This stood as a geographical category to begin with; much later the different non Prophet based religions were lumped together as Hindu. Minhaz-e-Siraj, a Persian chronicler first used it in 13 century for the area which is at present Punjab, Haryana and the land between Ganga and Yamuna. Politically it stood for the lands under control of Delhi Sultanate. In 14th Century disciple of Nizamuddin Auliaya’s; Amir Khusroo popularized it for South Asian region.
As such Asoka the emperor, who embraced Buddhism and presided over a large empire, adopted the policy of equal treatment to all the prevailing religions of that time, Vedic (Brahmanism) Jainism, Ajivikas and Buddhism. Buddhism at that time spread far and wide and was the major religion of the country till Pushyamitra Shung went on the rampage to eradicate it from this land. What prevailed later was many Shramanic traditions like Nath, Tantra, Shaiva, Siddhanta and later Bhakti also became major trends, while Vedic: Brahmanism was most dominant.
The Christian community began with St Thomas establishing a Church on Malabar Coast in AD 52 and it grew slowly mainly amongst Adivasis and Dalits. Islam came in 7th Century through Arab Traders and later many victims of the caste system also took to Islam. From the 11th Century many Muslim dynasties ruled from Delhi, Ghulam, Khilji; Lodhi and finally Mughal. Earlier also Shakas and Huns had come here. These interactions between different cultures were the hallmark and they interacted influencing each other.
It is during the medieval period that this interaction became more visible. While the two major communities Hindus and Muslims adopted many aspects of culture, it was not that any ‘one’ religious community was playing the role of the core or primary community and other being subordinate. The interaction in the matters of language, Persian and Avadhi interaction led to formation of Urdu. One interestingly realizes that one of the great traditions of Hindu faith, Kumbh, taking dip in the Holy river (Ganga, primarily) had the major event called Shahi Snan, (Royal bath). Of course with Hindu Nationalist Government in the seat of power its nomenclature stands changed to Amrit Snan! (Nectar Bath)
People participated in each other’s festivals with gusto. Holy, Moharram became social events for large parts of society. The Mughal Courts had Divali celebrated as ‘Jashna-E-Charagan’ and Holi as ‘Jashn-E Gulabi’. The peak of this of course was the religious traditions of Bhakti and Sufi. The followers of Bhakti Saints like Kabir in particular were both Hindus and Muslims, the Sufi saints Dargahs were frequented by both Hindus and Muslims. People of all religions visit Velankini Church. As the United Nations high level committee on ‘Alliance of Civilizations’ formed by the then Secretary General Koffi Annan, points out that our cultures and civilizations have enriched from each other and religions have interacted with each other with positive spirit.
Freedom struggle against British slavery, where Bhagawat and his ilk were totally absent, was the period of high interaction between people of all religions. We talk of Bhagat Singh and Ashfaq Ullah in the same breath. Indian National Congress which led this movement had Badaruddin Tayabaji, R M Sayani and Maulana Abul Kalam who presided over this organization with great enthusiasm. To cap it all people of all religions were a part of this struggle. Only the followers of Muslim League, Hindu Mahasabha and RSS kept aloof from this movement, which made us a nation. The likes of Bhagat Singh on one hand and Babasaheb Ambedkar on the other contributed to the inclusive nature of “India: Nation in the making.” Now RSS ideologues are denying this whole concept of ‘India Nation in the making’.
This struggle not only solidified the bonds of togetherness amongst people of different religions but also contributed to enhancement of mixed culture. For organizations like Muslim League and RSS the nationalism is built around the identity of religion. So Gandhi and others contributed to the making of modern India. The values of the freedom movement are part of our Constitution; where there is pluralism and diversity cutting across religions and languages. Mr. Bhagwat is talking of diversity within Hindu society and thinks that only Hindus are the ones who are responsible for this nation!
Bhagwat’s ideology of ‘Hindu’s alone’ is a big handicap to the progress of the country. They claim to follow Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, but their actions, training in Shakhas, through the type of issues, Ram Temple, Ghar Wapasi, love Jihad, ‘Cow as mother’ promote hate against minorities and leads to violence and intimidation of large sections of society.
World, India included, is a vast garden of rich diversity. To single out only Hindus as those responsible for the country is a divisive statement. We all Indians, irrespective of our religion, have rights and have responsibility to the nation.
