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THE POLITICAL stranglehold of the British came to an end in 1947, but not the divisive theories they had set afloat amongst our people. In line with their divide-and-rule policy, the natural diversities of regions, languages, sects and cultural traits in the Hindu society were sought to be projected as points of discord and dissension. At the same time, the British were only too well aware of the irresistible appeal of the innate Hindu ethos latent in the hearts of every section and stratum of the society which forms the fountainhead of the unifying current of national life of Bharat. It was this awareness that made them strive in every possible manner to defame and devitalise the Hindu spirit. Towards that end, the glorious history of Hindus was either totally blacked out or grossly distorted, their religious and spiritual traditions were derided as superstitious rubbish, their culture and civilisation painted as barbaric, and so on. Specious theories were propounded to prove that the Hindus were not even the original children of this land.
One such pernicious theory propagated by the British was that of separate Aryan and Dravidian races. About a century ago, in Tamil Nadu, a separatist Dravidian movement was fathered by the foreign Christian missionaries in conjunction with the British imperialists. The slogan of independent Dravidanadu with its trappings of separate Tamil culture, separate language and separate identity soon caught the imagination of the educated Tamils. Anti-Hindu, anti-North and antiDharma campaign unleashed by its protagonists proved a decisive factor in Tamil Nadu politics. Congress, despite its deep and widespread roots, was thrown overboard. Dravidian parties under various labels sprouted and had a field day. The DK once even organised a huge procession in Salem with portraits of Shri Rama garlanded with chappals (footwear) and beaten all along the route with the same. There was no protest from the public except by the Sangh workers. Such was the oppressive, suffocating climate of Dravidian separatist politics. However, the Sangh workers continued to hammer the truth of "one country, one people, one culture and one single national identity" for the whole of Bharatavarsha.
The first rays of this truth began to dawn on the public mind during the Emergency in 1975-77. The DMK was reigning supreme when Emergency was clamped. However, when with one wave of the rod, Delhi brushed it out of power, the titans of DMK shook in their shoes. Their men in jails were a picture of pity. They wailed and cursed their fate. Tamil Nadu stood bewildered at the strange contrast: on the one hand, the higltand, the mighty were cringing and crying; on the other, a small and practically unknown band of young men stood erect, accepted the grim challenge and carried on the underground movement. They shouted 'Bharat Mata ki jai', 'Long live Democracy' and 'Down with Dictatorship' in the streets, courted arrest and marched into prisons as heroes of liberty.
That proved to be the turning-point, though at first its effects were slow to be felt. That was the first time the Dravidian protagonists came to be exposed to an intensely nationalistic atmosphere. The first shock came to them when they found that the Sangh Swayamsevaks, whom they had imagined to be all 'Brahmins', 'Hindu fanatics', 'Northerners' and what not, were their own caste-fellowmen, and had better grounding in Tamil lore than themselves. As days passed, the gentle and cultured behaviour, the dedication, the fortitude and the breadth of vision of the Swayamsevaks conveyed to them a fresh and fragrant breeze of nationalism. In spite of DMK's well-known antipathy to all that went by the name of 'Hindu', Swayamsevaks did not, to the former's surprise, betray any trace of ill-will or prejudice towards them. On the contrary, they displayed a spirit of selfless love and service, not only in jails but even outside. They maintained helpful and reassuring contacts with the family members of the DMK and other detenus.
Then came the shocking incidents of Islamic mass conversions at Ramanathapuram, Kuriyoor, etc., reaching a climax at Meenakshipuram in 1981. Sensing the need of the times, Swayamsevaks came forward and formed 'Hindu Munnani' to build the Hindu morale and steer the movement of Hindu resurgence. The falsity of every argument of DK was laid bare and its hollowness exposed. The dangers of conversion were unmasked in over two thousand public meetings held throughout the province.
It is hardly surprising that the DK and DMK leaders, finding their separatist anti-Hindu balloon deflated, unleashed a venomous anti-Sangh, anti-Hindu crusade all over Tamil Nadu. And who, pray, were their staunch allies in this 'holy war'? Who else but the Islamic and Christian zealots! This confederacy only further exposed the weak spots of all the three. Joining of hands by the DK-DMK leaders with elements which have come out openly for the destruction of Hindu society and Hindu Dharma caused further disillusionment in their ranks.
It was not merely a question of the DK and DMK losing ground to the Sangh. It was something deeper. The whole ideological thrust of the separatist Dravidian movement was blunted and made irrelevant by the deeply-felt Hindu appeal. When, for example, the DK gave a call to boycott the temples and started picketing near them, people refused to respond. On the other hand, when the Hindu Munnani called upon the devotees to throng in large numbers on such occasions, the response was overwhelming.
There was yet another factor. The dangers inherent in the ganging up of DK and DMK with the communal and fanatic Muslim bodies like Muslim League and Jamat-e-lslam were thoroughly exposed to public view. Investigation of the names and the party affiliations of those who had played a leading part in mass conversions in several places revealed that they were either office-bearers or active sympathisers of DK and DMK. They had succumbed to the lure of money and other temptations, and misled their innocent fellowmen. The fierce anti-Hindu propaganda of these groups had destroyed the ancient religious roots of innocent people and made them fall an easy prey to Islam. By contrast, it was the Sangh Swayamsevaks, the champions of Hindu consolidation and Hindu Dharma, who came to the rescue of their brethren in that hour of crisis.
All this had had a wholesome effect on the rank and file o f the Dravidian and other parties themselves. A number of activists belonging to the AIADMK, the DMK, the Congress, Janata, etc., have joined Hindu movements like the Sangh and Hindu Munnani, cutting across political differences and finding a common uniting appeal in Hinduism. It is no longer a strange sight to find even one-time stalwarts of the Dravidian movement on the Hindu platforms voicing Hindu demands.
C. Armugam was a close associate of E.V.Ramaswami Naicker, the founder of the DK movement. He was, for the last 35 years and more, a colleague of K. Veeramani the present DK general secretary and E.V.R's successor. But now, he has been disillusioned with the DK movement for the anti-Hindu turn it has taken and has started publicly supporting the cause of Hindu consolidation. In an open letter to Veeramani, published in Dina Malar (20th April 1982), Armugam wrote: "The time has come to remind you of some of the wise words of E.V.R.E.V.R used to emphasise the need for rousing the spirit and self-respect among the '97 per cent' of our society. When he referred to 'our society', he evidently implied the Hindu society. It is unfortunate that you are now indulging in the condemnation of organisations devoted to the same kind of transformation in Hindu society as was envisaged by E.V.R."
Later, speaking to the Sangh workers, Armugam gave some more pertinent information: "When, years ago, Ambedkar was thinking of going over to some other religion, E.V.R had written to him not to think of forsaking the Hindu fold. He had stressed that reformation in the society could be brought about only by remaining in it and fighting for the dignity and rights of the backward sections. E.V.R had also written a series of articles in Vidudalai to that effect."
There was yet another significant factor. Dravidianism, supposed to take within its sweep all sections of the Tamil people, had miserably failed in neutralising the poison of casteism and untouchability within its fold. Dravidian strongholds in the southern parts of Tamil Nadu had been, until recently, the scene of very severe Thevar-Harijan clashes. The fanatic Muslim and Christian elements were always ready to fish in troubled waters. Many times the agents-provocateurs of the riots happened to be these anti-Hindu elements themselves. On such occasions, widespread mutual attacks, killings and burning of houses were not uncommon.
Ramanathapuram district had always been a sensitive area prone to such caste riots. Communal Muslim elements had taken advantage of riots in February 1981 and indulged in widespread arson and attacks. The Hindu Ottrumai Maiyam (Centre for Hindu Unity) organised by Swayamsevaks soon became the common platform for a number of Hindu organisations to put a stop to the internal schisms among the Hindus. Over 100 prominent leaders and representatives of all castes from the interior villages of the district involved themselves actively in the movement.
In January 1984, a Padayatra (foot-march) was undertaken in the conflict-torn and the conversion-prone areas, in which the Prant Sanghachalak and other workers of Sangh participated. At the end, a one-day conference of all the caste and sub-caste representatives took a historic decision to do away with their mutual differences and strive for Hindu unity and harmony. The huge public meeting that followed bore eloquent testimony to the remarkable fervour the call had evoked among the common masses.
The results were soon visible. The festival at the Murugan temple, which had earlier sparked off riots, went on smoothly in 1984. All sections of Hindus including Harijans from neighbouring villages had joined, making the function a turning-point in the history of the district. The Hindu of Madras (18th March 1984) reported: "The panguni uthiram festival went off peacefully at the Murugan temple in Ramnad. A special feature this year was the perfect understanding between Harijans and non-Harijians."
The late Atmanatha Swamy, of the royal family of Ramnad and the then Jilla Sanghachalak of Ramanathapuram, came forward to continue the tradition of his illustrious forbears. His grandfather Maharaja Setupati was the one who had stood as a pillar of support to Swami Vivekananda for his voyage to America. In line with that great legacy, Atmanatha Swamy accepted the challenge of social conflicts and began visiting the Harijan villages and localities. He would sit in their humble abodes, take tea with them and invite them to his house for meals. He also saw to it that the temple attached to the royal family so far closed to the Harijans was opened to them. He had even decided not to participate in the worship and other celebrations in the temple without them. One can well imagine the impact such a conduct on the part of a member of the royal family—and one belonging to the Thevar community—must have had on the hitherto neglected sections of the society.
The Jnana Ratham project of VHP gave one more powerful thrust to the movement for Hindu social harmony. The Ratham was specially taken to the backward rural areas. Harijans and other neglected sections were amongst those most exposed to the DK s anti-religious propaganda assaults. But now, Lord Muruga, installed by Shri Kanchi Shankaracharya and Shri Pejawar Mathadheesh in the Jnana Ratham, was Himself coming to their humble hamlets and huts to give darshan—an opportunity denied to them for centuries. Their devotional fervour had to be seen to be believed. At one place, there was a regular stream of devotees who started pooja and abhisheka in the afternoon which came to a close only after midnight. Later, two more Rathas-Shakti Ratham and Jnana Deepaka Ratham—have joined the earlier one giving a big impetus to the project.
The strategy of the terrorists in Punjab appears to be, in the main, a three-pronged one: at the 'bullet' level, and at the political and social levels. The degree of their success or failure in the first two spheres is by now a point of critical assessment by the public and the press. But, probably, the stiffest of challenges the terrorists are facing is on the social front.
The terrorists are keenly conscious of the reality of the Punjab situation. The Sahajadhari (non-Sikh) Hindus form no less than 45 per cent of the population. Any dream of achieving 'Khalistan' would evaporate into thin air if they stood firm and asserted themselves in their native soil. Their mass exodus could be effected only if the Sikhs could be inflamed into attacking them en masse. The Sikhs in the rest of the country would, the terrorists probably believe, then have to face the wrath of other Hindus and would be driven to Punjab. Such a situation alone could prepare the ground for their dream of 'Khalistan' to come true. The terrorists' tactics on the political front is aimed precisely at destroying every kind of political leadership and making the democratic political process grind to a halt, so that the non-Sikh factor could be eliminated from the political arena of Punjab.
The most formidable impediment the terrorists are facing in this respect is the commendable manner in which the Sikhs have refused to raise their arms against their other Hindu brethren. This is so even in the interior rural areas where the Sahajadhari Hindus form a small minority. On the contrary, instances are not wanting where the local Sikhs have assured their Sahajadhari brethren of protection and dissuaded them from migrating elsewhere. The traditional bonds of brotherhood between the two sections have thus remained intact, in spite of grave provocation.
An incident at a village, Kara-Sahari near Hoshiarpur, in February 1988, needs to be written in letters of gold When the terrorists warned the Sikhs in the audience at the Raas-Lila programme during the Holi festival to get out or else face the bullets along with other Hindus, the Sikhs retorted: "We have been born and bred together as brothers; we would rather die together than bow down to your threats. Remember, your bullets cannot snap the ties of our blood." When the bullets rained, the majority among the 35 massacred and twice that number wounded were Sikhs. They fell martyrs in the highest tradition of their Gurus who had paid the price with their lives for the defence of the entire Hindu society.
It is in this background that the importance of the role being played by the Sangh Swayamsevaks can be appreciated. Time and again, the All-India Executive Committee of the Sangh has directed the Swayamsevaks in and outside Punjab to continue to strive for maintaining amity and goodwill among the Sikhs and other Hindus. For, the Sangh has always looked upon the Sikhs as one of the valiant, devoted and self-sacrificing sections of the Hindu society. During the 1947 holocaust, scores of Swayamsevaks had shed their blood in rescuing Sikh men, women and children along with other Hindus. During the dark days of violence and terror preceding Partition, among those in the forefront defending the holy precincts of Darbar-Sahib in Amritsar were the Sangh Swayamsevaks. In the Sangh Shakhas also, the Keshadharis and Sahajadharis have always mingled together without any distinction.
The campaigns undertaken by the Swayamsevaks to reinforce the united will of all Punjabis against the terrorist tactics have naturally received unstinted support from the Sikh community, and more so from its intelligentsia.
When the VHP announced its plan of holding Vishal Dharma Sammelan at Amritsar on 12th and 13th March 1983, many eyebrows were raised. Would this religious meet inflame the fanaticism of non-Sikhs as a reaction to Sikh extremism? And, how would the Sikhs themselves react to this move of VHP? The Government too was gripped with anxiety. Over a thousand armed policemen were drafted for a round-the-clock vigil.
But what took place at Amritsar on that occasion was something remarkable. The l00,000 strong,six-kilometre-long procession comprised all sections of Hindu society. Thousands of Keshadharis, drawn from hundreds of villages, had streamed into Amritsar along with other Hindu brethren, to join the historic march. The local gurudwaras held a 24-hour langar (free meals) for the delegates. Four truckloads of parathas came from thousands of homes to the conference venue.
All through the conference, not a trace of difference between Sikhs and non-Sikhs was to be found anywhere. The revered Gurus of Namdhari, Mazhabi and other sub-sects of the Keshadharis joined the venerable Hindu Swamis and Hindu leaders like the Maharana of Mewar, Bhagvat Singh, Dr. Karan Singh, Gulzarilal Nanda, Prof. Rajendra Singh and Rajamata Vijaya Raje Scindia, in proclaiming the intrinsic unity of the Hindu people. Sadguru Jagjeet Singh of the Namdharis had sent his blessings from abroad for the success of the conference. He said: "Strengthening the traditional ties of brotherhood and oneness among the Hindus and Sikhs is the most urgent and paramount duty cast upon all of us. The future of Punjab as much as that of the entire Bharatavarsha lies in the success of this mission." At a time when the poison of political rivalries was spilling over polluting all fields of national life, the Amritsar Sammelan showed the way for sprinkling the Amrit (nectar) of goodwill and brotherhood on society.
And just before the Blue-Star Operation, a batch of 115 workers including students, teachers and social activists of Jnana Prabodhini—a creative, constructive movement based at Pune and initiated by a pioneering Swayamsevak V.V. Pendse—had undertaken a peace march in Punjab, the first ever to be taken up by a voluntary organisation. They met the extremists as well as the commoners, carrying to them the message of national integration. In Amritsar, they stayed at the Golden Temple and held discussions with Sant Longowal and Bhindranwale, and appealed to them to uphold the cause of national integration.
The timely role played by the Swayamsevaks in rescuing the Sikh brothers and sisters during the Delhi carnage in 1984, in the wake of the assassination of Indira Gandhi, is noteworthy. Hundreds of Sikh families were given protection in Swayamsevaks' homes; relief camps were set up for the needy and necessary service rendered at their homes also. Several hundreds of Sahajadhari Hindu families came forward to offer refuge to their Sikh neighbours even risking their own life and property. The Sikhs migrating to Punjab after the Delhi killings carried with them the tidings of how the Swayamsevaks had come to their rescue at that crucial hour.
Elsewhere too, the timely guidance given by the Sangh leaders on crucial occasions played not a small role in easing the tension. In the wake of Delhi bloodshed Balasaheb Deoras's condemnation of the heinous acts rang forth in unequivocal terms. Whenever Sahajadhari Hindus travelling in buses were singled out by the terrorists for.attack, statements of Balasaheb and Punjab Prant Sanghachalak cautioned the non-Sikh Hindus in Punjab and elsewhere not to succumb to anti-Sikh reactions.
In scores of places like Patna, Bharatpur, Ranchi, etc., the Swayamsevaks played a decisive role in defusing the tense situation and saving the Sikh families and gurudwaras from mob fury. The incident at Devband, in Saharanpur District, UP, is illustrative. On the morrow of Indira Gandhi's assassination, the Tehsil Sanghachalak was on his way to a temple for his daily worship. The sight of a frenzied mob proceeding towards the gurudwara alerted him and he immediately hurried there. Standing rocklike at its entrance, he stopped the crowd, calmly argued, persuaded and convinced them of the harm their action would cause to the Hindu society. It was only after the mob was pacified and had dispersed that the Sanghachalak left the place. The reason why the incensed mob could be calmed down was of course, the moral authority that the words of the Sanghachalak carried. Behind his appeal lay the penance of a man dedicated to the cause of Hindu unity all his life.
At Kanpur when the Sikhs were made the target of the fury of ruffians which took a toll of their lives and property, the Swayamsevaks came forward to repulse the attacks. Four or five Sikh families were sheltered in the residence of the Prant Sanghachalak till peace was restored. When the house of Prof. Sardar Pradyumn Singh of S.D. College was besieged by a mob, the Swayamsevaks drove them away and saved the family from the jaws of death. In South too, a prominent VHP worker at Coimbatore gave shelter for over a fortnight to several Sikh families whose houses were attacked and shops burnt down.
Punjab, the Swayamsevaks initiated several measures to build popular protest against the terrorist tactics and to strengthen the morale of both Sikhs and Sahajadhari Hindus. Several programmes were organised with a view to providing a platform for the Sikh intelligentsia to give the much-needed guidance to the Sikh masses.
The Punjab Ekata Sammelan (Punjab Unity Conference) organised by VHP on 6th May 1984 at Chelmsford Club, New Delhi, was one such. Speaking at its inaugural session, Lt. Gen. J.S. Aurora said: "So far we, as peaceful citizens, had left the arena to the extremists and the Government. In the meantime, the battle of minds is being lost. Hindu-Sikh amity which has existed for centuries and endured many vicissitudes is disappearing. We cannot afford it and we must not let it happen."
Dr. Gopal Singh, the Lt. Governor of Goa, said: "For me Hinduism is like my mother. In fact, my mother herself was a Hindu. Sikhism won't have its roots or existence without Hinduism and India." The Sammelan came "as a ray of hope at the end of the tunnel in the midst of the tragedy that is Punjab today"— Sardar Khushwant Singh, the eminent journalist, said.
Soon after the Blue-Star Operation, when the Sikh priests gave a call for karseva (voluntary service) at the Golden Temple, Swayamsevaks were among the first to respond. Hundreds of Swayamsevaks, in Sangh uniform, reached the temple in a procession led by the City Sanghachalak. The presence of the Sangh Swayamsevaks in such impressive numbers moved the organisers of the karseva, who appealed on loudspeakers to other participants to follow the example of Sangh and work for maintaining peace and social harmony in the State. A couple of days later, a large number of prominent BJP leaders from Punjab and Delhi also took part in the kar seva. These leaders called on Jathedar Kirpal Singh, head-priest of Akal Takht, and impressed upon him the urgency of issuing a hakamnama against the killers of innocent people.
Prominent Sikh Swayamsevaks came together from all over the country in a conference at Delhi on 31st August 1986, to take stock of the situation and chalk out further steps. The conference had the theme 'Save Punjab, Save Bharat'. Besides prominent savants, leading advocates, doctors and businessmen from the Sikh community from several provinces, Jathedar Ramsingh of Patna Saheb was present on special invitation. All of them emphasised the need for the Sikh intelligentsia to give the lead to the Sikh masses for reinforcing unity between the two sections of the society and defeating the machinations of the secessionists.
The Swayamsevaks in the labour field too were not wanting in initiative. At several places the BMS organised peace marches and unity conferences in which both the Keshadharis and Sahajadharis participated in large numbers. The coming together on a common platform of all the ten all-India trade union organisations with the purpose of promoting mutual goodwill between the two sections also helped. The National Integration Convention held by them at New Delhi on 11th May 1986 marked yet another milestone. At its preparatory meeting, the President of BMS highlighted the positive basis for national integration. He said, it lay in the innate cultural unity of the Indian people amidst the diversities of language, province, sect, caste, etc. He also pointed out the dangers af the theory of 'many nationalities' which had culminated in the 1947 Partition.
The State capitals also witnessed similar Integration Conventions on 9th August the same year. At the end of the conference at Bangalore, the President of AITUC, Karnataka unit, remarked: "For some of us, talking of national integration is a new thing, but for BMS it is not so. They have been its firm votaries since the very beginning." At many of these conferences, the Communist trade union leaders too lamented the vivisection of the country, and traced the root-cause for all the present divisive forces at work to that initial blunder.
The massive turn-out at the Punjab Ekata Sammelan organised by the Rashtriya Suraksha Samiti at Amritsar on 23rd November 1986, was a powerful demonstration of the determination of Punjabis to fight secessionist and anti-national elements. It was a spontaneous outburst of people's exasperation with persistent killings and the insane demand for 'Khalistan'. Every tehsil of Punjab was represented at the Sammelan. A large pumber of organisations including the VHP, ABVP, BMS, BKS and Seva Bharati had mobilised their supporters to make the Sammelan a success.
Over 500,000 people and party workers enthusiastically responded to the call of BJP and thronged the lawns of India Gate in New Delhi on 23rd February 1987, the opening day of the Budget Session of Parliament, to register a massive protest against the Centre's Punjab policy and its failure to check infiltration in the westem and eastern regions, including Rajasthan, Gujarat and West Bengal.
It was perhaps the biggest demonstration at Parliament House in recent years. One could see a sea of humanity from the dais to the other end of the horizon the rally was organised, in the words of Atal Behari Vajpayee, to tell the people of Punjab that they were not alone in their fight against terrorism and to wake up the sleeping Government at the Centre. The rally demanded a security belt all along the Pakistan border.
During February 1987, a morale-boosting programme for the Sahajadharis and Keshadharis alike was undertaken by the Rashtriya Suraksha Samiti, Punjab. A 125-strong Balidani Jatha, with volunteers drawn from neighbouring States also, undertook an intensive 34-day tour of Punjab. They would insist on holding meetings at gurudwaras where the Sikhs felt apprehensive because of terrorist menace. The meetings turned out to be extremely cordial and brought a new awareness to the rural Sikhs about the true nature of the Punjab problem. It also helped in reinforcing the morale among the Sahajadhari Hindus residing in border areas.
One more significant step was the Sadbhavana Yatra organised by the VHP from 28th February to 9th March 1987. It was a valiant initiative taken by the saints and mahants from all over the country to build bridges of understanding between Sahajadharis and Keshadharis in Punjab. Dharmacharyas from almost all the provinces had joined the yatra. The 400-strong Sadbhavana Mandal covered 42 places all over Punjab. Hundreds of VHP workers followed the saints to spread the message. All along the route, both Keshadharis and Sahajadharis participated in acwrding a reverential reception to the Sabdhavana Yatra members. Some of the dharmacharyas like Shri Pejawar Mathadheesh moved about informally, especially among Sikhs, and visited gurudwaras. They talked to Sikh leaders, jathedars, student leaders, professors and the so-called terrorist young men also. The reception that greeted them at Amritsar was most touching.
Prominent among the Yatra members were the Sant Vamdev Maharaj, Pejawar and Adamar Mathadheeshas of Karnataka, Avaidyanath of Gorakhpur Peetha, Jagadish Singh, Prabhudutt Brahmachari, Swami Satyamitrananda and Ashok Singhal of VHP. At the close of the Yatra, the religious leaders were received by Prof. Darshan Singh Ragi and leaders of the Sikh Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee inside the Swarna Mandir. The talks took place in a very cordial atmosphere.
Units of the Rashtriya Sikh Sangat, sponsored by Swayamsevaks from among the Sikhs, are coming up all over the country to give expression to the feelings of the silent and suppressed majority among the Sikhs. Its first all-Bharat convention held at Nagpur on 17th March 1987 presented a beautiful blend of various shades of enlightened Sikh opinion. Delegates were drawn from all over the country—from Tamil Nadu to Himachal Pradesh and from Punjab to Bengal.
Chaired by the venerable Manek Singh Soni of Chandrapur, the inaugural session at the Dr. Hedgewar Smriti Bhavan started with the recitation of holy Ardas. Jayawant Singh Lamba, in his touching welcome address, said that the holding of the meet at that venue signified the confluence of two great forces born for the protection of Dharma - the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the newly-born Rashtriya Sikh Sangat.
Swayamsevaks all over the country have been busy over the past few years involving both the Keshadharis and Sahajadharis in common functions. An impressive programme of an Ekata Dindi-Pilgrims'March for Unity—and a public function was held in Bombay in August 1986 to mark the 636th Nirvan Divas (death anniversary) of the great unifier, Sant Namdev. Rashtriya Ekjut and Maharashtra-Punjab Ekata Forum had jointly sponsored the significant programme.
Mayor Dattaji Nalavade shouldered the palanquin of Sant Namdev to signal the start of the procession. Dulip Singh, Minister for Social Welfare, Punjab (who had been specially deputed by the Chief Minister S. S. Barnala for the occasion), Manmohan Singh Bedi, former Mayor of Bombay, Ram Naik, BJP MLA, and others accompanied the procession. Dr. Gopal Singh, Shankar Rao Chavan, the - Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Moropant Pingle of RSS and others spoke on the occasion.
In response to the call given in 1987 by Balasaheb Deoras, Guru Tegh Bahadur's martyrdom day was observed in hundreds of places all over the country—with both Sikhs and other Hindus participating with great fervour.
The ABVP came out with an imaginative project on that occasion. Shahid Sandesh Jyoi` Yatra starting on 25th November 1987, the birthday of Guru Nanak, from Guru ka Mahal the birth-place of Guru Tegh Bahadur at Amritsar, traversed through Punjab and Haryana and came to a close on 10th December 1987 at Shisganj Gurudwara at Delhi where Guru Tegh Bahadur's head had rolled at the hands of Aurangzeb, in defence of Hindu Dharma. With the participation of student leaders drawn from all over the country, the Yatra symbolised the unified will of the youth of Bharat in the cause of Punjab.
The spirit of heroism imbibed by the Swayamsevaks in the Shakhas was amply demonstrated in the incident at Ludhiana on 28th March 1986. When five terrorists arrived on scooters at the morning Shakha, the strong and well-built Harish Katyal, the Mukhya Shikshak, pounced upon the terrorist who was firing. While Katyal was grappling with him, another terrorist shot Katyal in the head and all of them fled. While Katyal died on the spot, the Mandal Karyavaha Krishnalal, who was also ridden with bullets, died the next day in the hospital. The Punjab Government decided to honour Harish Katyal posthumously for his exemplary courage. At a public meeting, the Health Minister Basant Singh Khalsa, who presided, paid glowing tributes to Katyal.
Nor was this an isolated instance. When two terrorists armed with pistols pounced upon a prominent Swayamsevak of TaranTaran and tried to snatch away his scooter, he instantly jumped upon one of them and floored him. Subjected to crushing blows, the terrorist gave up his pistol and ran for his life following his other colleague who had already fled. This was in February 1986.
A Swayamsevak from Pathankot was sitting in the factory of his friend in Batala. Two terrorists arrived. They stood covering the two with their pistols and demanded Rs. 5,000. Sensing the defiant mood of the Swayamsevak, one of the terrorists fired. Right at that time, the Swayamsevak, in a lightning move, hit the intruder on his hand and the bullet sped past injuring parts of his body. Faced with the Swayamsevak's fierce onslaught, the terrorist ran and tried to speed away on his bicycle. The Swayamsevak raised an alarm, chased him and caught him. Other young men also joined in the chase. The other terrorist also was caught and both were killed on the spot. This was on 21st October 1987.
On 25th May 1988, a letter from 'Khalistan Commando Force' demanding Rs. 50,000 was delivered to a prominent merchant-Swayamsevak in Taran-Taran. On the next day, the terrorist came to enquire about the response to his letter. The Swayamsevak coolly replied that the letter had been torn up and thrown into the wastepaper basket. The terrorist thereupon started his threatening tactics. Just then, the 70-year-old father of the Swayamsevak came to the shop. As soon as he saw the terrorist, he thundered at him saying "Well, we have been waiting for you since yesterday" and pounced upon him. The old man's deadly punches left the young terrorist gasping for breath. He was later handed over to the Central Reserve Police (CRP). The whole of Taran-Taran was thrilled and filled with the talk, "If a 70-year-old man can humble a young man of 25, why not you and I?"
The efforts of Swayamsevaks to mobilise youth power, bazaar-wise and mohalla-wise, to resist terrorist attacks has also begun to yield good results. On the evening of 24th April 1988, some terrorists swooped upon the Putalighar bazaar in Amritsar city. They went on a shooting spree leaving one dead on the spot; another had to be hospitalised. But unlike earlier occasions a new kind of reaction was seen this time. There was no trace of the usual panic. Instead, with the Swayamsevaks in the vanguard, the people in the bazaar dashed forward, caught hold of one of the terrorists and beat him to death. The others fled and escaped into an orphanage. But the people gheraoed and did not allow any of them to escape until the CRP came and arrested all the ten of them. The incident has generated a new wave of courage and self confidence in the area.
The Punjab Peedita Sahayata Samiti run by Swayamsevaks has been attending to persons wounded in terrorist violence and admitted at the hospitals in Amritsar and some other district centres. Over one thousand Swayamsevaks have so far offered blood in Amritsar alone for the wounded. Besides personal attendance, providing medicines, meals and cash for the maintenance of the patients and their attendants has been going on for several months. Up to the beginning of 1988, 376 families whose main earning member had fallen to the terrorists' bullets have been given substantial monetary assistance.
The 'adopt-a-child' scheme—Dattak Yojana—initiated by the Samiti is intended to render educational assistance to children orphaned in terrorist violence. The adoption extends beyond the educational assistance; the adopting family begins corresponding with the child, invites him/her to their home on festive occasions and develops a parental attachment. More than the economic aspect, such emotional nourishment by the society fortifies the child and the mother to bear the trauma with courage. Apart from individual and small-scale adoption programmes, bigger ones have been organised at places like Amritsar, Abohar, Ludhiana, Hoshiarpur, Batala and Pathankot. So far, about 1,000 children, identified as deserving urgent help, have been adopted. Identification of the remaining families in need of help is continuing.
The poignant scenes witnessed at the 'adopt the orphaned child" programmes provide a striking instance of how the common people react to the terrorist carnage and respond to the relief efforts of the Swayamsevaks. Here are some highlights of the programme at Abohar where 101 children were adopted.
When the news spread that the widowed mothers and their children, coming from far and near, were lodged in the local gurudwara, thousands of men and women hastened there to offer them solace and cheer. On the next day, when those mothers with their children came on the stage to receive the cheque (Rs. 5,000 per mother and Rs. 500 per child for the current year) the crowded assembly was literally in tears. During the entire duration of the programme, offering of new clothes for children and mothers continued, forming a huge heap on the dais. While the local Gurudwara Committee lovingly looked after the board and lodging of hundreds of mothers and children and their relatives, the Durga Mandir offered Rs.10,000 and two sets of clothes for each of the children adopted on that day. Sikh families adopting Sahajadhari Hindu children were as common as Sahajadhari families adopting Sikh children.
The other centres of adoption also witnessed equally touching scenes. At Ludhiana, the local Panj Star Club bore the entire expenses to the tune of Rs. 51,000 for the adoption programme. At Panchkua, the Jain Boarding offered to take in 50 boys free in their hostel, and at Bhatinda the Sanatana Dharma Sabha took in 30 children. Well-to-do families are also volunteering to bear the marriage expenses for the girls of bereaved families.
Such is Punjab, even to this day, standing up as one single loving brotherhood refusing to snap its traditional bonds of blood and history in the face of the divisive tactics and the threats of the terrorists.
The Swayamsevaks settled abroad also have not lagged behind. They took the initiative in organising condolence meetings to mourn the death of Indira Gandhi and to emphasise the unity of Hindus. At Croydon, a suburb of London, a meeting was held on 2nd November 1984, under the auspices of South London Council where all Hindu associations participated. It was presided over by Sardar Harbhajan Singh Chatwal, President, Guru Singh Sabha. When the Rt. Hon'ble Bernad Weatherill, Speaker of the House of Commons, was requested to take part in the function, he came hurrying immediately after completing his work at the House of Commons.
Sardar Chatwalji declared, "We are all Hindus", and emphasised the traditional bonds of brotherhood between-the Sikhs and non-Sikh Hindus. He specially urged them not to get provoked because of the tragic event. Meetings were also arranged at Leicester, Birmingham, Wembley and other important cities. Everywhere, the refrain was the same — condemnation of Khalistani terrorism and separatism, and affirmation of unity of Sikhs and non-Sikh Hindus.
Communism, both in its theory and practice by the various brands of Communists, has all along proved destructive of our national integrity and culture. However, the Communists are keenly conscious that the rise of Hindu awareness, more than anything else, will take the wind out of their propaganda sails.
In 1978, in the 'Onam' special number of Jan Yug, a CPI organ, in Kerala, the articles by C. Achut Menon, one-time Chief Minister of that State, and N. E. Balaraman, state secretary of the party, bewailed the growth of the Sangh in the thought arena also: "The rightist reactionary forces and their thoughts like those of the RSS are raising their heads everywhere in Kerala. And we, the Communists, are losing our ground. The intellectuals are fast drifting away from us. This is a most deplorable state of affairs and sounds a danger signal for our movement."
The two Communist leaders had also named certain famous Communist poets and thinkers like O.N.V. Kurup, the late Vayalar Rama Verma and P. Bhaskaran as having forsaken their fold and gone out to the Hindu camp. Their poems had in the past fascinated and drawn the Kerala youth into Communism. Now the same poets have dedicated their poetic genius for the singing the glory of the ancient culture of Bharat. Rama Verma became a firm devotee of Ayyappan and his devotional songs achieved tremendous popularity on the silver screen. P. Bhaskaran was another gifted film-script writer whose social plays had earlier popularised the Communist ideas through the powerful mass media, but it was he who produced the Adi Shankaracharya film in Malayalam, pouring out all his artistic genius and devoted labours over it.
The present President of Tapasya (a forum founded by Swayamsevaks) who was also the vice-president of Kerala Sahitya Academy, Akkitom Achutan Namboodiri, was himself a poet with pronounced Marxist leanings. He was also a close associate of E.M.S. Namboodiripad in the social reform movement. His famous poem on 'the history of the twentieth century' is in fact the story of his disenchantment with the Communist theory and practice.
In this context, an article by C. Achut Menon in the journal Career highlighting the true content of Bharatiya nationhood is revealing. He wrote that their previously held Communist theory of Bharat as a conglomeration of several nationalities based on linguistic cultures was wrong. From ancient times, Bharat, he said, has been a single nation, as evidenced by the establishment of four Maths by Adi Shankara at the four corners of the country. Finally, he added that at the root of this single nationality lay 'Hindutva'!
It is common knowledge that the Communists rely mainly on physical force to eliminate their ideological adversaries. The same has been the experience in Kerala also. The way the Sangh Swayamsevaks have been subject to Marxist attacks all these years is too well known to need elaboration. However, it is now acknowledged by all that for the first time the fear of Marxist violence, which had held all other groups to ransom, has been shattered by the heroic resistance of the Swayamsevaks. Truly, the martyrdom of over sixty Swayamsevaks in this struggle - many of them working in organisations like BMS, ABVP and BJP - has not gone in vain.
The way in which the Swayamsevaks—some of them the active workers of the ABVP and the BKS—have faced the Naxal menace in the Telengana region of Andhra Pradesh is a thrilling saga by itself. The student wings of the Naxalites—the Radical Students Union (RSU) and Progressive Democratic Students Union (PDSU) - had for long concentrated specially on the university campuses. The Osmania University at Hyderabad was a hot-bed of their intrigues. Some years ago the then Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh openly lamented that the Kakatiya University at Warangal had virtually turned into a training-camp of the Naxalites. Social welfare hostels for SC and ST students were their other breeding-centres. Various student hostels formed the sanctuaries for their underground hardcore 'squad' members. During the holidays, the students were used for spreading the Naxal ideology in the rural areas. Full-time cadres were also drawn from the students.
The Naxal writ ran in several parts of Telengana; their firearms silenced all opposition. The Congress, and later the local leaders of Telugu Desham, vied with each other to please the different Naxal groups. Any one who dared to question, let alone oppose, the autocratic 'red rule' was either killed or maimed. In Warangal and Karimnagar districts, one can see people with limbs cut off. None of them are rich, oppressive landlords as often made out. Their only sin was that they refused to obey the Naxal diktat. The press too was silent. The local reporters could never report about Naxal goondaism, much less their myrders and other atrocities. The chief reporter of Udayam, a Telugu daily, once gave specific instances of how journalists were threatened with dire consequences and prevented from reporting. The press barons played safe when red terror was on the rise.
The underground Naxal strike-force played a decisive role in seeing that PDSU and RSU won the students union elections unchallenged. Impressed by this win, the rural students would report to their innocent village folk about the power and popularity of the Naxals. Any student who protested against the Naxal leaders' using the hostels for their illegal activities was thrashed. The spineless officials too buckled under their threats. The Naxal ideologues were often invited by the unions to address the students. Pictures of Lenin and Mao were painted on the walls of all such educational centres. On 15th August and 26th January, the Indian Tricolour was pulled down and burnt, and red flags hoisted.
It was in such terror-stricken atmosphere that ABVP came forward to accept the challenge. Appeal to nationalism and the cultural values, and invoking the ideals of the great nation-builders like Swami Vivekananda, provided the mainstay for its ideological offensive. As expected, attacks on and stabbings of the ABVP workers by the Naxals became common. But the spirit of sacrifice and tenacity of its workers soon attracted the non-committed majority among the students. As the popularity of the ABVP grew, it decided to challenge the Naxals in the union elections. In place of the red flags and the 'red' slogans, the saffron flags fluttered and cries of 'Bharat Mata ki jai' and 'Lal gulami chodkar bolo Vande Mataram' (stop cringing before Reds, start roaring 'Vance Mataram') began rending the skies. The public were amazed when they saw that the ABVP workers had triumphed in the elections. Programmes like seminars on the message of Vivekananda, lectures by scholars on Bharatiya values are now being arranged by the student unions.
The incident on 26th January 1981, at the Kakatiya University campus at Warangal, proved a watershed. When the Indian Tricolour was sought to be pulled down by the Naxals, the ABVP workers headed by Sama Jaganmohan Reddy resisted it effectively. He also volunteered as the chief witness in the police case against the Naxals—something unheard of before. In the court premises itself, Naxals warned him of the fatal consequences that awaited him. But, Reddy shot back that he cared more for upholding the Truth and protecting the honour of the National Flag than for his own life. And true to his words he became a martyr within hours on the same day—having fallen to the Naxals' attack. But the impact of his martyrdom could be felt when the students' union elections came. The Naxalites declared that none except the PDSU and RSU should contest. But the ABVP was already in the field. The election contest turned out into a pitched battle between the RSU and ABVP cadres. Newspapers reported that in the conflict, the Naxalites received severe beating and ran for their lives.
When this news spread, the Telengana villagers were stunned. Who are those 'saffron' boys who could thrash and put to flight the 'red-lords'? - they wondered. The police and the various political parties too were astounded. That was the time when the CPI and CPI(M), who had once ruled the post-Independence Telengana politics, had lost their ground to Naxalites. Their student wings had long ago stopped stepping into college portals or even putting up wall-posters. In such a Naxalite stronghold, the ABVP had stood up and established its supremacy.
The Naxalites, having failed to face the ABVP workers on their own strength, goaded the Muslim students to join the PDSU and RSU to 'finish' the 'Hindu Threat'. They chose Jagatial in Karimnagar District, one of their strongholds, to mount a surprise attack on the ABVP office in August 1983. It was a bloody one-hour-long, 'no-holds-barred' encounter between just 16 ABVP workers and over 200 of the attacking group. It resulted in the death of one Muslim Naxal; the rest fled helter-skelter.
As the news of this thrilling encounter spread, the fear of the 'barrel of the Naxal gun' ended in the surrounding rural areas also. The village youth now felt encouraged to come forward to form the patriotic vanguard under the leadership of Bharatiya Kisan Sangh. The Kisan Sangh workers succeeded in nailing the lie propagated by the Naxals that they were the champions of the poor and the downtrodden. They exposed the tactics of the Naxals—how they had been indulging in murders of ordinary farmers and social workers. The ABVP brought out a well documented brochure giving the details of the murders and atrocities perpetrated on such persons. Gopala Reddy and Ramachandra Rao of Jagatiyal, who were in the forefront of this movement, were fatally attacked. Jitendra Reddy, son of the Provincial Secretary of Sangh, who successfully resisted the Naxal menace, also fell to their bullets.
Such glowing examples of heroism and martyrdom inspired the village youth with the spirit of self-confidence and resistance. For the first time, the villagers began resisting the Naxalite tactics of fleecing the farmers for money. In one such incident in Nancherla village of Karimnagar District, the chief Naxal organiser Shankar was lynched to death by the villagers.
However, encouraged by the laxity of law-enforcement authorities and with unscrupulous politicians at their back, Naxals have continued their attacks on ABVP workers. But, proportionately, the ABVP morale is increased. Even the villagers have begun to write on their walls and shout 'ABVP zindabad' and 'Bharat Mata ki jai'. At a time when neither the CPI(M) nor CPI could fight back or mobilise the villagers when their leaders were killed or maimed, the ABVP succeeded in leading thousands of Telengana villagers to the State capital to demand that Naxalites be dealt with with an iron hand. That massive demonstration on 18th December 1984 at Hyderabad proved a turning-point and forced policy-makers to take a fresh look at the Naxalite menace.
Over a score of Swayamsevaks, mainly ABVP activists, have lost their lives in this grim battle. But their sacrifices have not gone in vain. All the unions of different faculties and all hostel committees of the Osmania University of Hyderabad have, since 1986, come under the ABVP umbrella. The college campuses are now rid of unpatriotic slogans and writings. Hostels have been freed from serving as hideouts for anti-national elements or as centres for illegal conspiracies. Academic calm has returned to educational campuses. The Naxalites, having lost those safe hideouts and their habitual village sanctuaries, are now forced to take refuge in dense forests. It is from there that they come out occasionally to burn a bus or a railway station or kill or kidnap police and government officers. However, the people also know that the hitherto unchallenged sway of Naxals over the students and the rural youth has been subdued to a considerable degree. The people also know who the young men responsible for this refreshing trend are.