RSS says fanaticism growing in the name of Constitution and religious freedom

“The formidable form of growing religious fanaticism in the country has raised its head again in many places. The brutal murders of activists of Hindu organisations in Kerala, [and] Karnataka are an example of this menace. Series of dastardly acts revealing communal hysteria, rallies, demonstrations, violation of social discipline, customs and conventions under the guise of the Constitution and religious freedom, inciting violence by instigating meagre causes, promoting illegal activities, etc. is increasing,” the annual report said.

Hinting at a conspiracy with long-term goals, the report said, “There appears to be elaborate plans by a particular community to enter the government machinery. Behind all this, it seems that a deep conspiracy with a long-term goal is working. On the strength of numbers, preparations are being made to adopt any route to get their points convinced.”

The statements come at a time when Karnataka has witnessed widespread protests by Muslim girl students against the ban on wearing the hijab in schools and colleges.

The report has been released even as the RSS is holding its Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha baithak in Gujarat to take stock of the work done by the Sangh in the past one year, chart out the future course of action and discuss issues of national importance. The ABPS is the highest decision-making body of the RSS and all top and regional leaders of the Sangh attend the meeting.

In its annual report, the Sangh also raised religious conversions.

“There is continuous information about the planned conversion of Hindus in different parts of the country like Punjab, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh etc. This challenge has a long history, but, of late, different newer ways of converting new groups are being adopted. It is true that the social and religious leadership and institutions of Hindu society have woken up to some extent and become active to check this trend. It seems necessary to make joint and coordinated efforts in this direction in a more planned manner,” the report said.

The Sangh report said that while Hindu society is awakening and standing up with self-respect, “inimical forces which do not tolerate this” are conspiring to create a vicious environment in society.

“The challenge of increasing divisive elements in the country is also alarming. Efforts are also afoot to weaken the society by rising [sic] various fissiparous tendencies in Hindu society itself. As the census year approaches, there are instances of inciting a group by propagating that ‘they are not Hindus’,” the Sangh said, adding that there were conspiracies to make “unwarranted” allegations against Hindutva.

“[A] malicious agenda is at work to present all these in the country and abroad under [an] intellectual garb,” the report said.

The report also spoke about the post-poll violence in West Bengal and the episode of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cavalcade being stranded on a flyover in Punjab before the Assembly polls there.

“The events that took place in Bengal last May 2021 were a result of political animosity and religious fanaticism,” said the report.

“Competition is essential in the political field, but it should be in a healthy spirit, and should be within the purview of democracy; the race should facilitate ideological brainstorming, and strengthen the development of society. …The most condemnable incident of stopping the convoy of the Honourable Prime Minister of the country in the name of farmers’ agitation on the main road while he was going for a scheduled program was certainly a challenge for the security; but at the same time, this heinous act has also raised questions about political decorum, the central-state relation, the sentiment towards constitutional posts, etc,” the report said.