The annexation of Indian Occupied Kashmir and Ladakh was only the tip of the iceberg. It is part of a greater conspiracy by the progenitors of Hindutva, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) to purge India of non-Muslims and even lower caste Hindus, the Dalit.

Hindutva has acquired a menacing lease on life. As Prof. Donald Eugene Smith warned in his classic, India as a Secular State (Princeton University Press; 1963), “Nehru once remarked that Hindu communalism was the Indian version of fascism, and, in the case of the RSS, it is not difficult to perceive certain similarities. The leader principle, the stress on militarism, the doctrine of racial-cultural superiority, ultra-nationalism infused with religious idealism, the use of symbols of past greatness, the emphasis on national solidarity, the exclusion of religious or ethnic minorities from the nation-concept – all of these features of the RSS are highly reminiscent of fascist movements in Europe. Fascism, however, is associated with a concept of state-worship; the state as the all-absorbing reality in which the individual loses himself and in so doing finds ultimate meaning. This conception has no counterpart in RSS ideology; in fact, the Sangh explicitly rejects the notion that its objectives could be attained through the power of the state. Its aim is the regeneration of Hindu society, which must come from within.” (p.468).

Nehru’s words were prophetic. No wonder the BJP is hellbent upon declaring India’s founding father a traitor and fiend. Other Indian academics, with great prescience had warned of the impending gloom. This scribe’s book on the subject, Rising Hindutva and its Impact on the Region has used quotes from eminent Indian thinkers and academics. Those who are no longer alive are being demonized while the surviving ones are being hounded and harassed.

Virendra Prakash, in his book Hindutva Demystified, states: “Hindutva, as articulated by Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and adopted by Hedge war as the bedrock of the ideology of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has little to do with the real, noble faith of the Hindus. It is a totally artificial construct, based on a motivated and unsustainable definition of ‘Hindu’. Coining a new definition of ‘Hindu’ to suit his objectives, Savarkar developed a powerful instrument to exploit the emotions and passions of the Hindus against the rest.”

Dr. Partha Banerjee, in his book In the Belly of the Beast: The Hindu Supremacist RSS and BJP of India An Insider’s story, gives an insightful account into the enigmatic RSS and its various offshoots-collectively known as the Sangh Parivar (Sangh Family)-their daily activities, camps, training courses, celebrations, fundraising, prayers, songs, and Sanskrit sacraments. Dr. Partha Banerjee is very familiar with the Sangh’s system of recruitment and indoctrination of its “volunteers”, and their allocation in its various wings. Through a very watchful, laborious, and devoted state of mind, he followed the organization and was admired by peers and leaders alike during his days with the Sangh. His portrayal of the organization is thus unique-reverence for personalities coupled with disillusionment with the ideology-a very different approach not matched by outside observers.

The Professor Emeritus and eminent historian, Dr. Thapar, at the age of 87 has been asked by Modi’s goons to submit her CV so that her case for continuation of service may be examined. The Hindu fascists would love to silence her bold voice of reason

The various chapters of his book meticulously unfold the day-to-day functioning and year-to-year growth of the SanghParivar-an insider’s tale of final disenchantment. He says: “I am scared today. When I think about the Sangh now, a nightmarish metaphor comes to my mind. I keep perceiving them as a continuously expanding creature like some mutated ominous insect inside an ancient cocoon-an insect that has mutated only to expand and eat everything it grabs but never to come out of its shell. It does it so slowly but surely that although it is potentially a great danger, nobody understands how perilous it is-one reason is that nobody can see it. But the insect keeps growing and mutating and devouring anything it gets. It nourishes itself from all the youthfulness and freshness of its surrounding nature and becomes bigger, stronger, and uglier.”

Dr. J. Kuruvachira, in his exposé, ‘The Truth about V.D. Savarkar’, and Dr. Romila Thapar of Jawaharlal Nehru University are clear examples. Dr. Thapar, in her ‘Cultural Posts’ and The Penguin History of India had pointed out that Savarkar’s use of the expression ‘Hindu history’ to refer to the Mauryan age is misleading. From the Brahmanical point of view, the Mauryas were patrons of heretical sects such as the Jains, Ajivakas and Buddhists. Chandragupta Maurya was closely associated with the Jaina tradition, Bindusara, the father of Ashoka, with the Ajivakas, and Ashoka with the Buddhists. The Professor Emeritus and eminent historian, Dr. Thapar, at the age of 87 has been asked by Modi’s goons to submit her CV so that her case for continuation of service may be examined. The Hindu fascists would love to silence her bold voice of reason.

The Modi government would trample on every articulation of conscience, even eminent scholars and academics to further its heinous agenda.

The writer is a retired Group Captain of PAF. He is a columnist, analyst and TV talk show host