A brief introduction to Hindutva and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)
The RSS is a right-wing extremist organization that was founded in 1925. Hindutva is a political ideology based on the fake nationalism of the RSS. Its aim appears to be to establish Hindu hegemony within India, but its actual goal is to maintain Brahmanical supremacy.
The RSS has many child organizations, including the Bharatiya Janata Party, which is its political wing. It was banned in India four times, but it is active now. It was banned for the second time in 1948 when Nathuram Godse, an erstwhile member of the RSS, assassinated Mahatma Gandhi.
Note: This is the third post in the blog post series that exposes Sanatana Dharma, the Varna system, or caste system, which discriminates against 90% of Indians and is the root cause of many socio-economic issues in India. I suggest you read the remaining posts mentioned in the first post to have a comprehensive understanding of Sanatana Dharma.
Discussing Hindutva and RSS without mentioning Sanatana Dharma is incomplete
As I have said in other articles, Brahmanism, or Sanatana Dharma, first existed as a Vedic Brahmin religion. Later, it disguised itself in Brahmanized Hinduism and Hindutva. The difference is that the Brahminists chose the varna, or caste system, as a strategic tool to maintain Brahminical supremacy in Vedic Brahmanism and Hinduism. But they chose religion and Hindutva political ideology.
After Muslims’ and British rule, many Hindus converted to Islam and Christianity. On one hand, the RSS is consolidating the votes of backward caste Hindus by fanning hatred against Muslims and Christians in the name of fake ‘Hindu nationalism’. On the other hand, the strategy of the RSS is to strengthen the Brahmanical caste system. RSS works for Hindus is nothing but a lie. What the RSS wants are Hindu votes. RSS internally upholds the Varna system, or Sanatana Dharma. I have mentioned some examples of this below.
In his book ‘Pakistan or the Partition of India’, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar said1
If Hindu Raj (Hindu Rashtra) does become a fact, it will, no doubt, be the greatest calamity for this country. No matter what the Hindus say, Hinduism is a menace to liberty, equality and fraternity. On that account it is incompatible with democracy. Hindu Raj must be prevented at any cost.
The irony is that RSS Brahmins are spreading false propaganda that Ambedkar appreciated RSS ideologies.
When Ambedkar mentioned Hinduism and Hindus, he was referring to Brahminist Hinduism and Brahminist Hindus, who also consist of non-Brahmin upper castes and who support the discriminatory and exploitative Varna system.
Vedic Brahmanism was very explicit in discriminating based on varna, caste, and gender. However, Hindutva disguises its Brahminist nature under Hinduhood as if it doesn’t believe in or practice the varna, or caste system.
Let us understand the inherent casteist and communal nature of RSS with some facts.
Inherent casteist nature of key Hindutva leaders was exposed
In his book Integral Humanism, Deendayal Upadhyaya, the founder of the BJS (BJP’s predecessor) political party, said2
The four castes, according to our conception, are thought of as analogous to the different limbs of the Virat-Purusha. It was suggested that the Brahmins were created from the head of the Virat-Purusha, the Kshatriyas from his hands, the Vaishyas from his abdomen and the Sudras from his legs. If we analyze this concept we are faced with the question of whether there can arise any conflict between the head, arms, stomach and legs of the same Virat-Purusha. If conflict is fundamental, the body cannot be maintained. The origin of the caste system was on the above basis, and if this idea is not kept alive, the castes, instead of being complementary, can produce conflict.
In his book We or Our Nationhood Defined, M. S. Golwalkar, the second Sarsanghchalak (head) of the RSS, said3
None of the so-called drawbacks of the Hindu social order (Varna system), which prevents us from regaining our ancient glory
Also, he said “It is this fact which made the first and greatest lawgiver of the world – Manu, to lay down in his code, directing all the peoples of the world to come to Hindusthan to learn their duties at the holy feet of the “Eldest born” Brahmans of this land.“
Savarkar, who shaped the idea of Hindutva, advised inter-caste marriages and dining to build a pan-Hindu identity for Hindutva.But there is no genuine thrust to question the Brahminical texts, which are the root cause of inequality among Hindus. He gave vague explanations in his book to support the Varna System.
In his book Essentials of Hindutva, Savarkar said4
An individual at times by his or her own actions may lose his or her first caste and be relegated to another. A Shudra can become a Brahman and Brahman can become a Shudra.
Does it make any sense? We all know our caste is decided by our birth and we can’t change it.
Also, he said, “Even in ancient times our four main castes enjoyed a kind of special representation on a communal basis in our councils of State as well as in local bodies.”
It was a very untruthful statement. How did Shudras enjoy special representation when they were not allowed even to own property, acquire knowledge, and escape the servitude of the top three Varnas? His book is full of such vague and untruthful mentions.
There is no surprise that people like Deendayal, Golwalkar, and Savarka, who believe in Brahminical supremacy, admire the Varna System and Manusmriti, which discriminate against 90% of Indians. Now BJP leaders are praising Manusmriti, and judges are making references to Manusmriti.
Inclusive outward appearance of the RSS and its internal casteist practices
The outward appearance of the RSS looks socially inclusive to all Hindus because all members wear the same uniform. The simplicity and discipline of RSS members and their social service attract Hindus from OBC, SC, and ST castes.
They feel that they are doing a great service to the nation. But the RSS uses them only to spread hatred and attack Muslims and Christians because the RSS thinks Muslims and Christians are a threat to their ideology, i.e., Brahminism or casteism. Indians who converted to Islam and Christianity escaped the brutal caste discrimination that exists in Hinduism to a great extent. But caste discrimination still exists in Christianity and Islam too.
RSS is always against religious conversions and wants to keep Hindus belonging to backward communities under the Hindutva umbrella to maintain the Brahmanical social order and polarize Hindu votes.
Ex-RSS members exposed fake nationalism of Hindutva and casteist, and communalist RSS leaders
Communalist RSS
The communalist nature of the RSS is well known. However, in this post, I discussed only a few experiences of RSS members who quit RSS after understanding the true nature of Hindutva and RSS.
In an interview given to the T10 news channel, Vijay Shankar Reddy, an ex-RSS Pracharak (propagandist), said
RSS is a conspiracy of Brahmins. It is a university that creates religious extremists." He further explained that it first trains the members in personality development, and after 2 years, it starts teaching hatred towards Muslims and Christians. It takes a pledge from its members that they should be ready to kill Muslims and Christians and sacrifice their lives, if necessary, to achieve Hindu Rashtra
You can watch the interview (Telugu language) below:
RSS chief Mohan Bhagat was exposed
Shankar Reddy who exposed Mohan Bhagat, the 6th Sarsanghchalak (head) of the RSS, said:
I went to every Mandal in the two states, and I pledged, along with thousands of RSS workers, to build Ram Mandil in Ayodhya. I was shocked to hear from Mohan Bhagwat after the elections. He told me personally once, "If Ram Mandir is structured, we cannot create communal riots between Hindus and Muslims, and we cannot provoke Hindus against Muslims.
You can watch the interview (English) below:
You can watch another interview (Telugu language) below:
Exploitation of Shudra and Ati-Shudra RSS members by Brahminists
Bhanwar Meghwanshi, an ex-RSS vistarak (junior pracharak or propagandist), who left the RSS after facing untouchability and knowing the real casteist and communal nature of the RSS, penned the book ‘I Could Not Be Hindu: The Story of a Dalit in the RSS’.
He participated in the demolition of Babri Masjid as a part of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement. The movement was about building Rama’s temple by demolishing the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya, India, because some Hindus claim that the exact site of Rama’s birthplace is where the Babri Masjid was once built.
He made the following shocking revelations in his book:
As the train started to slide out of the station, all the important functionaries slid out of the train. I saw how one by one, the big folk, the industrialists, the sangh pracharaks, the leaders of VHP and BJP, all excused themselves. Having wished us well, they went back to their homes. Only people like me remained—impassioned Dalits, Adivasis, other young people from the lower castes, and a few sadhus and saints. To take charge of us, some lower-order functionaries tried to put us at ease, don’t worry, these people have other contingents to see off and then they’ll follow us directly to Ayodhya. They were never to come. They were sensible people and went back to their homes. I understood that sensible people always use us, we who are driven by passion; they push us into battle and return to their safe little coops. In this lies their greatness; maybe greatness is just another word for cunning.
He made another shocking revelation on Brahminical propaganda. For this, he had access to a confidential letter from the RSS exhorting upper caste members of the organization.
To make the caste system of Hindu society even stronger. It was only because of this caste system, the letter said, that Hindu society had survived. If not for the caste system, everyone would have become Muslim or Christian
You can watch his interview with Brut India below:
You can watch his interview with The Quint news media below:
The top RSS leaders, who are the masterminds behind the Brahmanical conspiracies, are mostly Brahmins and other upper castes. The foot soldiers who participate in RSS-initiated disputes, attack Muslims and Christians, and are injured or die in the riots are from backward castes. The most important point and sad thing to notice is that all the victims from both sides, i.e., Hindus and Muslims or Christians, are Shudras and Ati-Shudras.
Footnotes
- Page no 358, 'Pakistan or the Partition of India', Dr B. R. Ambedkar, https://www.mea.gov.in/Images/attach/amb/Volume_08.pdf
- Page no 29, Integral Humanism by RSS ideologue Deendayal Upadhyaya
https://deendayalupadhyay.org/images/book/Booklet%20on%20IntegralHumanism.pdf
- Page no 129, We or Our Nationhood Defined, M. S. Golwalkar:
https://sanjeev.sabhlokcity.com/Misc/We-or-Our-Nationhood-Defined-Shri-M-S-Golwalkar.pdf
- Page no 32, Essentials of Hindutva, Savarkar: https://savarkar.org/en/encyc/2017/5/23/2_12_12_04_essentials_of_hindutva.v001.pdf_1.pdf
