Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat rang warning bells in his annual speech on the occasion of Vijayadashami, and also offered a roadmap to avert the “grammar of anarchy” sweeping through geographies.
Raising the stakes for the RSS on the global stage during its centenary celebrations, while asserting its rootedness in India, Bhagwat’s speech marks a departure from his past narratives.
Bhagwat seems to now seek a global ideological mentoring role for the RSS.
Quoting Abraham Lincoln, reflecting on the Battle of Waterloo, and weighing the Trumpian narrative of tariff-led disruptions in global trade, it was clear that Bhagwat was speaking to a global audience.
The stage was meticulously prepared. A live broadcast in 15 foreign languages (and 22 Indian languages), with opinion makers from the western media specially invited on the occasion, the RSS chief spelt out an Indian way of dealing with “upheavals sweeping through regions and geographies.”
Distilling ‘Grammar of Anarchy’
The Gen Z-led overthrow of Nepal’s KP Sharma Oli regime took centre stage in Bhagwat’s annual speech. “We will have to stop this grammar of anarchy,” said Bhagwat quoting BR Ambedkar, as the RSS chief dwelt on regime-changing “upheavals in Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka.”
“They are ours, for they have been part of us in the past. What has happened must concern, while it must not be forgotten that changes brought through the so-called revolutions have failed everywhere,” said Bhagwat.
Yet, Bhagwat revealed a deep concern in the shadow of Gen Z-led protests in Nepal, saying, “We will have to stop the tendency to resort to violence.”
The RSS chief, however, made no mention of the Ladakh violence. But his exhortation for a course correction in the face of environmental concerns because of the “prevailing development model” gave enough hints that the Ladakh violence is worrying him.
Dissecting Deepening Inequality
Even the Communist nations are working with a capitalist system, argued Bhagwat, as he sought to spotlight ideological contradictions.
His focus on “inequality and concentration of wealth” under the prevailing economic model will be seen against the backdrop of long-standing warnings from economic commentators about deepening inequities in the country.
His stress that a new model of economic development be explored is indubitably a message to the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to explore possible ways of course corrections.
Shying away from drastic measures for course corrections, Bhagwat laid emphasis on “gradual and small steps” to steer the economy to the path of “value-based development.”
Seen along with his mention of “environmental havocs in the Himalayas” and stress on a review of the development model in the fragile hilly regions, Bhagwat seemingly sympathised with views in a section of commentators that infrastructure projects in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh may be linked to the recent spate of landslides, cloudbursts, and flash floods.
Thus, Bhagwat’s veiled criticism of the economic model pursued by the Modi government may possibly worry the mandarins of the power corridors in New Delhi.
Adjustment, Alignment, and Arth Niti
Before one jumps to the conclusion that discords within the saffron family may be deepening, it is worthwhile to take note of the many signs that suggest that the Modi government and the RSS are quickly finding common ground to work on.
Prime Minister Modi penned two essays within a span of three weeks to laud the saffron mentor, first on Bhagwat’s birthday and now on the RSS’ centenary.
While Modi had hailed Bhagwat’s role in helming the RSS in the first essay, his second write-up described the Nagpur-based organisation as a “sacred manifestation of India’s eternal national consciousness.”
A coin and postal commemoration of the RSS feat had already been blessed by the Prime Minister.
Bhagwat’s economic narrative, as he outlined it, rests on 'Swadeshi', which has been the RSS’ key talking point on development for many years. The Prime Minister, too, has often invoked Swadeshi in his speeches, especially since India was jolted by US tariffs.
Bhagwat also patted the Modi government on its back for the response to the Pahalgam terror attack. His mention of the “firmness of the leadership” in leading the response to the Pahalgam terror attack will please many in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Yet, he also put the foreign policy in the spotlight, saying “we also got to know who among the nations are actually our friends.”
While adjustment and alignment in relations of the Modi government and the RSS are apparently underway, cues available suggest Bhagwat is asserting parental pivot in the saffron camp.
What Next for RSS?
The Shakha is the core strength of the RSS, as it gives the organisation its cadre. But Bhagwat credits the Shakha for building character among the people, which forms the “character of the society and the nation.”
The Shakha is at the forefront of actualising the “panchparivartan” of the RSS, unveiled a few years ago. At the core of the task is the challenge to achieve unity among the Hindus.
This is undoubtedly a response of the RSS to the visible challenge of identity (caste)-based politics. Bhagwat again quoted Lincoln as he said, “A divided house cannot stand.”
Bhagwat sought a global audience with his narrative as he spoke of “Vishwa Dharma”, which will remove “differences within societies and nations”.
The unity plank, as emphasised by Bhagwat often this year, is asserting “it’s not us versus them.”
“Differences cannot come in the way of unity,” argued Bhagwat.
The RSS chief has spoken on such terms at length, even at the Vigyan Bhawan last month, during which he has argued that unity per him is not uniformity.
Pitching “Vishwa Dharma” with the Indian value system as an exemplar, Bhagwat has sought to raise the stakes for the RSS as the organisation completed 100 years.
While reflecting on the fluid world order, Bhagwat signaled to a global audience that India seeks to play a significant role. To counter the western media’s portrayal of the RSS as merely a Hindu group, he clarified that his idea of “Hindu” refers to the people of the country as a whole—what he terms Hindu Rashtra, or what others may call Indian nationalism.
(The author is a senior Delhi-based journalist, with over two decades of political journalism spent in tracking the BJP, the RSS, and parliament. This is an opinion piece and the views expressed are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for them.)