The Institutional Composition of Hindutva
The Hindutva forces in India is not a monolithic institutional structure. In
other words, Hindutva is not embodied only by the most visible aspect - the
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP - Indian people Party) but by an entire set of
institutional arrangements and structures which all function together, in a
reasonably coherent fashion to produce the ideological and material structures
of the fascist complex. For any student of Hindutva therefore, it is important
that they know the different organizations, its origins and its role. Outlined
below is a brief description of each component part of the Hindutva complex -
what in India is popularly referred to as the Sangh Parivar.
Know Your Hindu
Fundamentalism
Brahmanic Terrorist Organisations
The Sangh Parivar
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Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)
National Volunteers Association
National Volunteers
Association:
The RSS was founded in 1925 by Keshav Baliram Hegdewar is the ideological
fountainhead of the modern Hindutva movement. Organized around the concept of
Shakas, a local cell formation where young men would gather for physical and
ideological training, under the tutelage of a brother or dada, the RSS
ideology as espousing the national cause was articulated over the next
decade or more. Madhav Sadashiv Golwalkar, who was anointed head of the RSS
shortly before his death by Hegdewar, clarified the idea of the nation in his
treatise "We, or Our Nationhood Defined":
We belive that our notions today about the Nation are erroneous... It
is but proper therefore, at this stage, to understand what the Western
Scholars state as the Universal Nation idea and correct ourselves (p. 21).
Based on a racial idea of Nation Golwalkar in praise of Hitler says:
To keep up the purity of the Race and its culture, Germany shocked the
world by her purging the country of the semitic Races - the Jews... 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 us in Hindusthan to learn and profit by (p. 35).
The above two quotes are only samples of what is a very clearly articulated
twin pronged ideology of exclusion (of other races/religions) and supremacy (of
Hindus). The RSS, cell like Shaka formation and the discipline inculcated within
are central to its success as a fascist force. The RSS cultural and ideological
work has not stayed within the boundaries of India. In the 1980's the RSS itself
broached out. The Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS), an organization modeled along
RSS lines emerged in the US in the 1980's, openly claiming allegiance to the
founding principles of the RSS.
The RSS was founded in 1925 by the
Maratha Brahmin Keshav Baliram Hegdewar [ Biju ] on the Aryan Vaishnava
Holy day of Vijaya Dashami (the 10th day of the moon) when the Aryan
invader Rama destroyed the Dravidian Empire of Lanka [ Sangh ]. This was
done to symbolise its inherent anti-Sudra nature. Its organisation is
highly skewed, with the Sar Sangh Chalak (supreme dictator) at the top [
Roots ]. This person can only be a Brahmin. It is the successor of
Vivekananda and Arya Samaj in the Neo-Brahmanist fundamentalist movement.
The militia is organised around local cells or `shakas' where weapons are
distributed to its hardcore members, who are drilled in a vigorous program
of harsh discipline. Vishnu temples serve as repositories of weapons as
well as centers of dissemination of its racist ideology of Aryan
supremacy. Its only leaders have been blue-eyed Sarasvat Brahmins, a
condition enshrined in its constitution. The Brahmin Golwalkar, the second
leader of the RSS, was trained as one of the hardcore followers of
Vivekananda.
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Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP)
Indian People's Party Indian Peoples party:
This is Hindutva's parliamentary front which constantly makes efforts to breach
the secular formation through parliamentary actions - elections, pushing for
legislations of various kinds, making visible the ideology in limited and
constitutional ways within mainstream political discourse. The BJP came into
existence after the collapse of the Janata Party which came to power after Mrs.
Gandhi's Emergency in 1979. The erstwhile Hindu parliamentary party - the Jan
Sangh - had merged itself into the Janata Party in the wake of Emergency.
However to call it a parliamentary party is to ignore its actual working. The
party top leadership with few exceptions are all RSS cadre. The party
participates in joint meetings with RSS leadership often. The election campaigns
of the party are often significantly shaped and helped by RSS cadres of the
local region campaigning for the party's candidate. In short, in more than one
ways the relation between BJP and other Hindutva organizations is quite clearly
visible.Its top leaders are all hardcore Brahminist RSS cadres. All its leaders
have been Brahmins too. Generally, RSS cadre graduate to the BJP. |
VHP (Vishwa
Hindu Parishad)
World Hindu Council
World Hindu Council:
The VHP was founded on August 29, 1964 in Bombay with the clear aim of being the
activist wing, that would undertake aggressive actions in civil society as a
whole. The first general secretary of the VHP made its goals clear as follows:
It is therefore necessary in this age of competition and conflict to
think of. and organise, the Hindu world to save itself from the evil eyes of
all three {all three being Christianity, Islam and Communism).
(From the Organiser, Diwali Special, 1964.)
The VHP has gone on to do just that - spread out as a extra-parliamentary
force throughout not just India, but the world. Its primary functions in India
are to mobilize forces for agitational and violent purposes. It took part in the
Cow Protection Movement though out the 60's and the 70's. The entire Babri
Masjid movement was orchestrated by the VHP - steadfastly refusing to enter into
any negotiation, rejecting the right of the judicial system in adjudicating on
the issue and mobilizing often violent events with the clear intent of
polarizing society and creating a political movement within public discourse of
Hindutva - the Rath Yatras of the 1980's and the final demolition of the Babri
Masjid in 1992 were orchestrated by the VHP in association with its "youth
wing" the Bajrang Dal. Again the strategy of the Hindutva combine as a
whole is palpably apparent here. BJP leaders for instance would participate in
VHP sponsored events, but when the results of such events came out - such as
violence and killings - the BJP would conveniently distance itself temporarily
from the VHP.
On the international front, the VHP's success lies in mobilizing migrant
Hindus, especially the middle class and lower middle class. The VHP of America
and its student wing the Hindu Student Council (which is present on many US and
Canadian campuses) is the most obvious example of its international
mobilization. The VHP of America and HSC's for instance conducted the the World
Vision 2000 conference in Washington D.C in 1993, which became a rallying point
for overseas Hindus and a ground for further recruitment in the wake of what
many commentators called a "celebration" over the destruction of the
mosque in India. The VHP of America and UK primary success can be seen if not in
any other way in terms of financial clout - as it is the primary mode of
channeling dollars and pounds into Hindutva politics back in India.
The council was established on August
29, 1964 in Bombay, Maharastra [ Biju ] with a political objective of
establishing the supremacy of Hinduism all over the world. It obtains
funds and recruits from Aryan Hindus all across the globe, especially from
the US, UK and Canada and has grown to become the main fund-raising agency
of Brahmanist Fundamentalism. The council was instrumental in the
demolition of the holiest Islamic shrine in Oudh, the Babri Masjid at
Ayodhya and has organised several massacres of Muslims and Christians. It
is in the forefront in the call for a Hindu Rashtra, a Hindu State
ethnically cleansed of its non-Aryan populations.
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Bajrang
Dal
Party of Hanuman
The militant wing
of the VHP, it was formed "to counter `Sikh militancy' " during
the Sikh Genocide of 1983-84 [ Bajrang ]. Created with the objective of
the eradication of Sikhs which it has termed "Muslims in
disguise", its cadres fought alongside Congress-backed Hindutva
militias during the massacre of 200,000 Sikhs under Indira Gandhi and
Rajiv Gandhi. Recruits carry a " knife-like trident to be slung
across the shoulder - an answer to the Sikh kirpan " [ Bajrang ]. It
has subsequently expanded its targets to include Muslims and Christians as
well. |
Ranvir
Sena
Army of Ranvir
The militia was
founded in 1994 by `the merger of several upper-caste private armies such
as the Savarna Liberation front and the Sunlight Sena' [ Rama ] in order
to combat Maoist Dalit organisations. It is essentially the Brahmin
private army of Bihar. Enjoying clandestine Government support, the
organisation is devoted to anti-Dalit terrorism and the preservation of
the Vedic apartheid system. Its militiamen are known to be heavily armed
with the most modern weaponry which is financed by the VHP, and the Sena
has openly claimed responsibility for numerous massacres of landless Dalit
Blacks and mass rapes of Dalit women. Human Rights Watch estimates the
private army has been responsible for more than 400 deaths [ HRW ]. |
Shiv
Sena
Shivaji's Army
The Shiva Sena arose
as a movement amongst Congress members. It intitially unleashed a
`physical annihilation' of Communists (who were mainly Black) and
against Dalits, and organised the mass murder of Bombay's
once-influential Black South Indian communities (`lungiwallahs') and
Gujaratis [ Roots ]. Subsequently, it engaged in the mass murder of 3000
Muslims [ Sri ] |
ABVP
Indian Universities Council
This front comprises
students of Hindu religious schools (vidyalayas). It has expanded its
base by infiltration into `secular' universities. Its higher-ranking
cadres are well-equipped with weaponry; they often organise communal
campus disturbances against Christians, Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists and
Jains. Most of its members graduate to become hardcore RSS and VHP
militants. |
Bharatiya
Jan Sangh
Indic Race Party
Founded in October
1951 with the Bengal Brahmin Shyama Prasad Mookerjee as its president,
who had resigned from the allied `soft' Brahminist Congress in Apil 1950
[ Chandra ] was president until he died in 1953. Its cadres were
carefully chosen indoctrinated activists. The second president, the
Brahmin Mauli Chandra Sharma resigned in 1954 to protest against RSS
domination of the party. It strove for an `Akhand Bharat' [ Chandra ]
ethnically cleansed of its Muslim, Christian and Black Sudroid
Populations. |
Hindu
Mahasabha
Great Congress of Hindus
The Sabha began as `an
extremist wing of the Congress Party' [ Perry ] and was founded by
the Maratha Brahmin Vinayak Damodar Sarvarkar. Influenced by `German
racism' [ Letter ] Sarvarkar sought to establish a racially pure
Hindu state ethnically cleansed of its non-Hindu populations.
Sarvarkar's followers were involved in the brutal assasinations of of
Sir Wyllie [ Sarvar ]. |
HSC
(Hindu Students Council)
World Hindu Council
The `student wing' of
the VHP [ Biju ]. It conducted the the World Vision 2000 conference in
Washington D.C in 1993 which was a celebration over the destruction of
Babri Masjid and the attendant genocide of 5,000 Muslims [ Biju ]. It is
involved in setting up hardcore Hindutva websites across the internet,
spewing hatred against Christians, Muslims, Buddhists and Sikhs. |
Hindu
Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS)
Hindu Volunteers Association
The HSS was formed in
the US in the 1980s, ` openly claiming allegiance to the founding
principles of the RSS' [ Biju ], in order to organise Hindu terrorists
in America. |
Arya
Samaj
Society of Aryans
Founded by Dayanand
Sarasvat (born 12 Feb 1824) [ Rao ] Swami Dayanand established the Arya
Samaj in 1875. The Dayanand Anglo Vaidic schools (DAVs) are its
propaganda wing, designed to raise a generation of brainwashed
militants. Most of its students go on to become hardcore RSS and ABVP
members. The Arya Samaj is the fountain of the Hindutva movement : `The
rise of Hindu nationalism can be traced to the Arya Samaj in the late
nineteenth century' [ Perry ]. Dayananad Sarasvati was a bigoted anti-Islamist.
This is what he had to say regarding Islam :
" Such teachings deserve to be
utterly discarded. Such a book [ Quran ], such a prophet [ Mohammed ]
and such a religion [ Islam ] do nothing but harm. The world would be
better off without them. Wise men would do well to discard a religion
so absurd and accept the Vedic faith which is absolutely free from
error." [Polemics], [ Sarasvati, p.633 ]
The raison-d'etre of the Arya Samaj was
anti-Islamism and anti-Sikhism :
" Both of the early leaders of the
militant Aryas, Pandit Lekh Ram and Lala Munshi Ram [in 1917 he became
Swami Shraddhananda], died at the hands of Muslim assassins as a
direct result of their involvement in communal activities -- polemics
and conversions. Lekh Ram was killed in 1897 due to hostile exchanges
with the Ahmadiya sect of Qadian. Shraddhanand was murdered in 1926
due to his shuddhi activities in Delhi and the United Provinces."
[ Polemics ]
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Ram
Rajya Parishad
Council of the Kingdom of Ram
Formed with the
explicit purpose of re-establishing Ram-Rajya (the Empire of Ram), its
goal was the elimination of Sudroid Blacks (Dalits, Dravidians, Adivasis,
Kolarians) and to establish a racially pure Aryan nation on the lines of
Ram-Rajya. Jan Sangh, the Hindu Mahasabha and the Ram Rajya Parishad was
10 seats with 6.4 per cent of the votes. [ Chandra ] By 1967 it had
disappeared. |
References
| [ Bajrang ] = `The Trident
Speaks', Outlook Magazine, http://www.secularindia.com/enemies_of_hindus_must_fear_us.htm
| [ Biju ] = `The Institutional
Composition of Hindutva', Biju Matthew, http://www.foil.org/politics/hindutva/hindorg.html
| [ Chandra ] = `Jan Sangh: The
BJP's Predecessor', by Bipan Chandra, THE HINDU ONLINE : Monday, May
11, 1998. http://www.foil.org/politics/hindutva/bipanchandra.html
| [ HRW ] = `Human Rights Watch
World Report 1999', Published by Human Rights Watch, http://www.hrw.org/
| [ Letter ] = `Appeal to the
Mayor of Marseilles', by EKTA ( Committee for Communal Amity ), http://altindia.net/documentation/Sarvarkarmemorial.htm
| [ Perry ] = `The Rise of Hindu
Nationalism in India', by A.Perry, http://www.students.haverford.edu/aperry/
| [ Polemics ] = "Religious
Polemics in the 1920s and the Rushdie Case,", by G.R.Tursby,
Indo-British Review , 18, 1 (1990), 51-59; earlier version published
in `Rushdie, Rajpal, and Religious Controversy in British India,' in
Proceedings of the Eleventh International Symposium on Asian
Studies, (1989), 423-34 http://www.clas.ufl.edu/users/gthursby/pub/index.htm
| [ Rama ] = `A history of
massacres', Venkitesh Ramakrishnan Frontline Vol. 16, ( Feb. 27 -
Mar. 12, 1999 ), No. 05. http://www.the-hindu.com/fline
| [ Roots ] = `Hindutva Offensive
Social Roots: Characterisation', by R.R. Puniyani http://www.foil.org/politics/hindutva/rampun1.html
| [ Sangh ] = `RSS - The "Sangh"
- What is it, and what is it not?', by Partha Banerjee, http://www.mnet.fr/aiindex/OnRSS.html
| [ Sarvar ] = `V.D.Sarvarkar',
Gambhirwala, Siddharth http://www.hindunet.org/hssworld/all/great_people/savarkar.html
, http://swaraj.net/iffw/profiles/savarkar_vd.htm
| [ Sarasvati ] = `Light of Truth'
, Swami Dayananda Saraswati, tr. by C. Bharadwaja (3rd edn.; Lahore:
Imperial Printing Works, 1927). cf. p. 633 for his polemics against
Islam.
| [ Sekhon ] = `Khalistan : The
Struggle To Regain Lost Sovereignty', Dr Awatar Singh Sekhon and Dr
Harjinder Singh Dilgeer, The Sikh Educational Trust, Box 60246,
University of Alberta Postal Outlet Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2S5,
Canada; web-published at http://www.khalistan.net/sov-one.htm
| [ Sri ] = `Sri Krishna
Commission Report', http://altindia.net/srikrishnareport.htm |
| Basu T. et al (1993) Kakhi Shorts, Saffron Flags, Orient
Longman,
N. Delhi.
| Andersen W. and S.D. Damle (1987) The Brotherhood in Saffron: The RSS
and Hindu Revivalism Vistaar, N. Delhi.
| Gopal S. (1990)" Anatomy of a Confrontation: The Babri Masjid RJB
Issue",Viking, N. Delhi.
| Pandey, G. (1993) (ed.) "Hindus and Others: The Question of Identity
in India Today" ,Viking, N. Delhi.
| Nandy A. et al (1995) Creating a Nationality: The RJB Movement and the
Fear of the self , OUP, N. Delhi.
| Thapar, R. (1985) "Syndicated Moksha",
Seminar, Sept.
1985.
| Sanskriti - Two Special Issues on Communalism in India (will be
available on this web site shortly). |
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The Peddlers of Hate in the name of
Religion!
[ The Hindu Fundamentalist
Circuit ]
Watch out for the following organisations.. of these the
RSS and VHP have operations within South Asia (in India, Nepal) and in many
locations of the Indian diaspora. Be on the look out for them in your nearest
city, they operate using hundreds of seemingly harmless cover or front outfits
promoting "Hindu culture". They form part of the same 'family or clan'
(known as the 'Sangh Parivar') engaged in a planned & systematic use of
religion towards political ends. This project is referred to as 'Hindutwa'
(about making India 'Hindu'). The present day Hindutwa organisations all
emanated out of the 'Hindu Maha Sabha' founded during the colonial period. A key
activist of the then Hindu Maha Sabha assasinated Mahatma Gandhi in 1948; Over
the last 50 years these organisations have acquired wide experience in plotting
mass pogroms, organising communal riots, engaging in mass propaganda campaigns
against religious minorities, etc..
Hindu Fascists at work
[On 6 December 1992 hysterical hoards of the langot brigade
manualy destroyed a 15 century old mosque as part of their campaign to
build a Hindu Temple in its place]
Dont remain deaf and dumb to the menace of communal politics.
Be active now. Collect their addresses and monitor the worldwide operations of
the Hindu Fundamentalists. Lets share information on how these operators from
the Saffron Brigade engage in international propaganda and fund raising.!
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