The RSS sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat chose the time, place and audience carefully to mark a departure from his principle of not publicly opposing the Narendra Modi government's policies. On April 16, addressing a packed audience of fund managers and stock brokers at the Bombay Stock Exchange, the heart of India's economic capital, the RSS chief questioned the government's policy to sell off its loss-ridden national carrier Air India.

"If Air India has not been run properly," Bhagwat said, "then give it to those who will be able to run it properly." He added later that "it should be an Indian as you should not let your skies be controlled by someone else" .

The RSS chief was only articulating what Sangh affiliates like the Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM), which lobbies for domestic industry, and the labour union arm, the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), have been saying for months about the sale-that it would be a raw deal for employees and that the government should instead divest a minority stake in the stock market to raise capital.

The RSS chief's statement saw the civil aviation ministry swing into damage control mode. The ministry has assiduously worked over the past 10 months to offload its majority stake in the airline, but has struggled to find buyers. Within a week of Bhagwat's speech, the ministry reworked the preliminary information memorandum (PIM) on Air India's strategic disinvestment to make it more attractive for Indian players. The new structure will allow existing players to incorporate Air India under a single holding company along with their existing brands. "We will definitely be interested in making sure that Air India remains in Indian hands. Not more than 49 per cent will go to foreigners," says civil aviation minister Suresh Prabhu. On April 23, exactly a week after the Sangh chief's speech, MoS (civil aviation) Jayant Sinha met SJM national co-convenor Ashwani Mahajan over breakfast to allay their fears over the sale.

The stalemate, though, continues, but the SJM had managed to bring Sinha to the negotiation table (the next meeting is due in the first week of May). Four years into the government, an outsized family of Sangh affiliates like the SJM and BMS, has been able to advance the Sangh's line on crucial issues-from labour, education and economy to even healthcare.

Organisations like the Laghu Udyog Bharti forced corrections in the implementation in GST and expansion of the definition of SMEs. The SJM has ensured that the old format of free trade agreements (FTA) has been discontinued (which it feels jeopardises Indian industry) and continues to be the biggest hurdles for FDI in multi-brand retail, brownfield pharma and security agencies. In education, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), along with the Shiksha Sanskriti Utthan Nyas (SSUN), have stalled the recommendations of the T.S.R. Subramanian committee to the HRD ministry in 2016. They are also pushing for the restructuring of education bodies All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and the University Grants Commission (UGC). And the BMS has stalled labour reforms and selloffs of public sector undertakings.

Meanwhile, the SJM is opposed to India joining the WTO or big multilaterals because it fears an adverse impact on Indian industry. It has pressured commerce minister Prabhu to block the US-led developed countries' bid to take on new issues like e-commerce and investment concerns at the forum till old ones like a permanent solution for public stockholdings of foodgrains is not resolved. Even at the cost of a collapse of talks at the ministerial conference in Buenos Aires in December. Last May, the SJM forced the government to discontinue plans to disband the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA), a body which it says helps slash prices of several life-saving drugs and critical medical equipment-and is a crucial part of PM Modi's Jan-Aushadhi plan of providing affordable healthcare. The SJM and Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS) have successfully blocked the clinical trials of genetically modified (GM) crops. Sensing the SJM's growing clout, the Niti Aayog invited it to the PM's meeting with top economists in January.

'Dharmakshetra', the SJM's nondescript headquarters in the middle-class residential colony of R.K. Puram in the capital, has seen several high-profile visits, from BJP party chief Amit Shah to finance minister Arun Jaitley just before the budget in February. Rajiv Kumar, vice-chairman of NITI Aayog, became the first head of any think-tank to visit the Sangh affiliate. Last year, Kumar had replaced Columbia University academician Aravind Panagariya, who, together with former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan, had topped the hit list of the Sangh and its influential ideologue, S. Gurumurthy. The SJM had held them guilty of pushing free market economic policies and opposing the alternative theories propounded by RSS ideologues Deendayal Upadhyaya and Dattopant Thengadi.

"The RSS is running the government," fumed Congress president Rahul Gandhi at an election speech in Karnataka this February. "It has planted its people everywhere. Even secretaries in ministries are appointed by the RSS." NITI Aayog's Rajiv Kumar, who has had fingers pointed at him, says, "I don't have any hesitation in engaging with the SJM or any other affiliates, but they will not have veto power in policy making."

Ashwani Mahajan, a professor of economics in Delhi University and SJM co-convenor, sports a blue business suit, matching cuff-links and a cravat as he works with associates on a paper for the government-it argues that an increase in minimum support price (MSP) for kharif crops will not trigger inflation as feared. It was on the instance of the SJM and BKS that Jaitley included the MSP commitment in the budget this year. Mahajan, along with the BKS, has also successfully halted the charge of GM crops, and is now pressing for a seed bill, declaring the farmer as the real owner of the seed. Their stand got a boost with the Delhi High Court judgment on April 11 declaring that patents can't be issued on seeds under Indian law. "If the ownership of the seed goes to the farmer, this will permanently block the entry of GM products in India," says Badrinarayan Choudhary, BKS general secretary.

Learning from the past

The Sangh remains wary of Modi's pro-reform and pro-liberalisation postures. The early days of the Modi government had suggested a return to the open warfare seen during NDA-I. There were serious disagreements between the Sangh affiliates and the government on FDI and labour reforms. The Sangh was furious at not being consulted on issues like opening up FDI in retail, bringing the land acquisition ordinance, labour reforms, and de-reserving of MSME exclusive segments.

The protest from its ideological parent saw the Modi regime withdraw the land bill in 2015 and slow down labour reforms. RSS heavyweights like Krishna Gopal, Dattatreya Hosabale and Suresh Soni stepped in to iron out the differences between the two sides. This resulted in an idea that never took off during NDA-I: bi-monthly coordination committee meetings. These meetings are chaired by BJP chief Amit Shah with Union ministers relevant to the issue at hand.

Sangh officials say they have learned two big lessons from the past-improving communication with the Centre and allowing affiliates to float think-tanks to make inputs more informed are key.

The SJM publicly attacked the NDA government for liberalising FDI norms in 2016 and has taken up a public campaign to create awareness against dumping of cheap Chinese goods in India. There is, however, no danger of a blow-up. "We've learned our lesson," says a senior member of the Modi cabinet.

The smooth flow of information is the reason why one top finance ministry official says the Sangh did not oppose the Goods and Services Tax (GST) last year. "They realised that though it created trouble for their core constituents-small and medium entrepreneurs-it was good for the country," says a top official in the finance ministry.

The Sangh philosophy also influences government policy making, says one senior cabinet minister. He defines this as "bringing Indic values in culture, commerce, economy, agriculture, education and health". Many policies now directly take from RSS ideologue Deendayal Upadhyay's 'antyodaya' and 'integral humanism' concepts. These include energy access to the poorest, affordable healthcare, improving access to education, "or the governance models of state moving out of welfare to development mode, towards labour oriented policy making. We are already doing this, if they have inputs, it's welcome," says Gopal Krishna Agarwal, the BJP's national spokesperson on economic affairs.

On the contentious disinvestment issue, BMS chief Saji Narayanan C.K. says, "A national debate is needed on the role of PSUs and how or why they should not be disinvested." Kashmiri Lal of the SJM says, "Selling PSU stakes to private players is a western model of liberalisation, we need to find our own way."

Equally critical to the Sangh is the issue of opening up FDI in retail. At a coordination meeting on December 26 last year, Jaitley asked the SJM leadership to consider the problem with an open mind: would they consider it if all products sold in the retail shop were Made in India? Jaitley was under pressure from Harsimrat Badal's food processing ministry and the NITI Aayog. The SJM rejected the proposal outright. Privately, SJM leaders admit that FDI is a "desirable devil". "All we ask is for an ecosystem to develop the domestic market too. This means rationalisation of import duties and strengthening access to capital. We are glad the government is doing it," says a Sangh ideologue.

Sangh affiliates say they can overlook FDI in certain sectors, but they have a list of no-go areas: multi-brand retail, security and manpower industry, brownfield pharmaceuticals and investments from China.

Chinese checkers

The last mentioned area is why Modi's outreach to China in 2018 will be vetted very carefully. The Sangh has a very clear line on China: it is not a friend of India. "Initially, the government told us the 21st century is of India and China," says Kashmiri Lal. "But we explained to them that China is not our friend."

The SJM believes its shrill campaigns after the border stand-off at Doklam forced the government to pull the plug on several projects allotted to the Chinese, including rail transit equipment manufacturer CRRC's Nagpur project for metro coaches, installation of a smart grid and a bid for a train sets manufacturing unit at Kanchrapara in West Bengal.

Part of the SJM's pique has to do with the trade deficit between the two countries crossing $50 billion and the dumping of Chinese goods in India. It has run a massive campaign to push anti-dumping duties of products ranging from steel, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, fishing nets, electrical equipment, to mobile handsets and more. Of the 370-odd complaints received by the Directorate General of Anti-Dumping & Allied Duties (DGAD)-a quasi judicial body under the commerce ministry, nearly 220 were against Chinese imports and duties were levied on 120-odd products.

The SJM is already pushing for setting standards for various products, and amendments in the General Financial Rules (GFR) to curb cheaper Chinese imports. Imports of low-end products like toys, for instance, dropped by less than half after the government mandated tougher quality criteria and certification by accredited agencies last September. Before this, Chinese toys accounted for 70 per cent of India'sRs 5,000 crore toy industry.

Labour pains

In July 2015, Modi invited the BMS's Narayanan to the PM's residence for tea. The union was angered by the government pushing for changes in labour rules like the Apprentices Act, 1961; the Factories Act, 1948, and Labour Laws, 1988, along with the relaxations offered by states like Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. Within a fortnight of the meeting, the PM had formed a five-member ministerial group. By August-end, eight of the union's 12 demands were met. This ministerial group still exists, and continues meetings with not only the BMS but other labour groups as well. That said, there are fierce disputes still-it has opposed the introduction of 'fixed term employment' in the budget speech of Jaitley, which led to nationwide protests and a threat to boycott the Indian Labour Conference (ILC) due in February this year (the PM was scheduled to attend it). Fearing an embarrassment, the government cancelled this year's edition of the ILC.

The PM's Economic Advisory Council chairman Bibek Debroy says there is a need for harmonisation of labour laws-some were framed as far back as 1885. "But this is voluminous work, and we need a consensus on this," he says. In the past four years, the BMS has pushed the envelope on many fronts. This includes the revival of the National Social Security Board for Unorganised Workers. The body has an advisory role, but the BMS has a 14-point agenda, including affordable housing, upgradation of skills, improvement of public health, provisions of old age homes etc.

Education Booster

Sangh affiliates like the ABVP reckon that a major test of its influence will be the new education policy which will overhaul the one formulated in 1986. The ABVP, led by its powerful national organising secretary Sunil Ambekar, successfully opposed the T.S.R. Subramanian draft of the New Education Policy submitted to the HRD ministry in 2016. Ambekar is an influential pracharak and his opposition led to the formation of the new committee, headed by former ISRO chief K. Kasturirangan. It submitted its report to HRD minister Prakash Javadekar in the first week of April. The new policy, they say, will bring more synergy with skills, an emphasis on values and study of history along with creating more space for teaching in vernacular languages. In 2014/15, just after the NDA took charge, Atul Kothari and Dinanath Batra of SSUN also ensured the removal of discrepancies in the CSAT and UPSC exams. This allowed for a level playing field for those from vernacular mediums.

The revival of Sanskrit is another item on the Sangh's agenda. Affiliates like the Sanskrit Bharati are pushing for the study of science and technology as reflected in Sanskrit literature, along with an inter-disciplinary study of Sanskrit and modern subjects. In 2016, all IITs and IIMs were asked by the HRD ministry to offer elective language courses in Sanskrit. In January this year, IIT Kanpur started text and audio services related to Sanskrit and Hindu texts.

The HRD ministry is also being lobbied with demands like a faster review of the Right to Education and state-wise regulators for education. Ambekar is pushing for the introduction of state-wise regulators to curb the "commercialisation" of education. "Regulators played a pivotal role in both telecom and civil aviation sectors where the entry of private players not only improved services but also reduced the cost for consumers," he points out.

While the Sangh affiliates now form a huge pressure group on the government, they chafe at the slow pace of policy implementation. A senior RSS pracharak blames the bureaucracy. "Sometimes, we get the vibe that they don't take us seriously," he says. Clearly, another area of convergence between the Sangh and the government