Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (R S S)
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2010-15: upward growth
The Times of India, Aug 16 2015
Anahita Mukherji
R S S is on a roll: No. of shakhas up 61% in 5 yrs
Kerala, which was never had a BJP govt, leads list
A bunch of lively schoolboys form a circle around an authoritative 12year-old in khaki shorts and a superman T-shirt at a Navi Mumbai maidan on a weekday night. At first glance, they look merely like children at play . But as the boy leading the group conducts a series of activities, from games and exercises to prayers and a session of marching involving bringing one's right hand to one's chest, it gradually becomes evident that this is an R S S shakha in progress -one of 51,335 shakhas held daily across the country this year.
Shakhas are the smallest units of R S S.
While the organization is called `extremist' by its critics, its admirers respond to the taunt by calling it `Hindu nationalist'. But even its detractors agree that the R S S organizational network is virtually unparalleled.
While there is no formal membership, an analysis of data on the number of shakhas conducted each year over the last five years shows a 29% increase in daily shakhas, 61% increase in weekly shakhas and 40% growth in monthly shakhas across India from 2010-11 to 2014-15.
The trend is similar in cities like Mumbai, which have seen a 34% increase in the number of daily shakhas.Weekly shakhas have grown by over 70%. The largest increase in shakhas across India over the last five years took place between 2013-14 and 2014-15. Kerala has over 4,500 shakhas -the highest in India -despite never having a BJP government. It's tempting to attribute the nationwide in crease in the number of R S S shakhas over the past two years to a change in the Central government. BJP is part of the 38 ideological affiliates of R S S that form the Sangh Parivar.
However, Pramod Bapat, media coordinator of the R S S Konkan division, insists R S S growth has nothing to do with a BJP government at the Centre, adding that the organization has flourished under Congress governments for decades.He gives Kerala's example to drive home his point. R S S is also strong in West Bengal, another state where BJP's presence is marginal.
A law graduate whom TOI met at a shakha conducted under a flyover says he joined R S S a few months ago via their website because he supported their views on Article 370 and Uniform Civil Code, and not because of the BJP government. In recent years, R S S shakha strength has in creased as timings are adjusted to suit various age groups -students, working professionals and retired people. As part of its outreach, R S S befriends heads of various communities (for instance, the head of a blacksmith community in an area) and involves them in various social activities, gradually making inroads into the organization.
While senior R S S member Narayan Samant, jailed during the Emergency , says the organization may have grown organically in the past, he believes it will grow a lot more in every sphere of life over the next four years as the government of the day belongs to the same ideology .“We are not against any community . We were not born out of an opposition to anybody. We only want Hindus to unite. If we become strong, opposition to us will reduce. When R S S was formed, Hindus stood divided. Now you will see much greater unity amongst Hindus,“ says Samant.
