Is the BJP's Modi-centric Campaign at Odds with the Principles of the RSS?

It is not easy to comprehend the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. It does not fit into the available models of political parties or social institutions and organisations. Some people say that the RSS has a dictatorial style of functioning. Others claim that it enjoins hero-worship. The truth is absolutely otherwise.

The founder of the RSS, Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, adopted a style that is miles away from hero-worship. There is no personality cult in the RSS. Following the Hindu tradition, it has a “guru.” The guru is the saffron flag, a symbol of sacrifice, purity and valour, before which the swayamsevaks present their offering once a year. The position of an individual does not depend on how much he has offered. There is no catch-phrase to eulogise any individual. The only slogan in the RSS, which every swayamsevak voices at the end of the prayer, is “Bharat mata ki jai.”

The RSS is an organisation for the entire society. It works through manifold spheres of activity; politics is one such sphere. The others are education, agriculture, trade, industry and dharma. Organisation of the entire society entails organising all these spheres of social activity, so swayamsevaks have been allowed to work in different fields.

In some cases, some social service-oriented persons started their projects of social upliftment and then RSS supplied them with a few workers. The Vanwasi Kalyan Ashram is one such organisation. What I want to stress is that politics, though an important sphere of national activity, is not the only sphere. Therefore the RSS cannot be equated with a political party. What the RSS emphasises is that, in whatever sphere its swayamsevaks work, they should not forget that we are a cultural nation, and all their attempts should be to strengthen and glorify this cultural nationhood.

Now about the question: “How can the personality cult that surrounds Narendra Modi in the BJP be reconciled with the traditions and culture of the RSS?” My answer is that electioneering is a special occasion. It needs an icon to attract voters. Shri Narendrabhai has provided that icon. This icon has proved fruitful. Note how many eminent personalities have joined the BJP in recent days. From the former chief of army staff VK Singh, to the eminent [former] police commissioner of Mumbai, Satyapal Singh, and the renowned journalist MJ Akbar. The credit for this must ungrudgingly be given to Narendrabhai.

Even Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayeeji was named prospective prime minister months before the actual elections in 1996. This, too, was done by no less a person than Shri Advaniji. Besides, Shri Vajpayeeji need no introduction. He was foreign minister in the Morarji Desai cabinet in 1977. He was the founder president of the BJP. He was also the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha for many years. He was always leading from the forefront. But Shri Modi was confined to the state of Gujarat. He was and still is the chief minister of that state. To bring him to the centre of Indian politics, he was declared a potential prime minister before the elections were declared. This declaration helped the BJP project his personality and his achievements before the entire country.

But let us understand that Narendrabhai knows the limitations of iconism. He has been a RSS pracharak and must be aware of the fundamentals of the RSS culture. He is a talented person and knows the difference between what is eternal (shashwat), what is occasional (samayanukul) and what is exceptional (apat-dharma).