MyVoice: Views of our readers - 22 Jan

Protecting the country from enemies RSS' prime objective

This is with reference to the article 'Why fear Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh?' (Jan 22). The article gave tag to RSS as patriots which is a genuine fact and hard to digest for its critics. RSS' prime motive is to save the country from those evil forces who just want to cut India into pieces which will never happen in near future, even today also there are many forces inside the country who are having food here only but talks for India's enemy.

The comment, "all 130 crores are Indians but Hindus" of Dr Mohan Bhagwat he is absolutely right. There is nothing wrong in this view. Hinduism is not a religion it is a way of life. India is having more enemies inside the country than outside and RSS will never let this happen as they are fully committed to protect their motherland.

Sharadchandran S, New Delhi

RSS, a symbol of unalloyed nationalism

Karuna Gopal's article "Why fear Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh?" (22 Jan) has captured the real ethos of the RSS. Though Nehru had harboured a visceral hatred for the RSS, he eventually came round and invited it to partake in the 1963 Republic Day parade recognising its role in supplementing the efforts of our armed forces during the time of Chinese aggression.

Yes, what is wrong in calling every citizen of India a 'Hindu' as RSS does in an inclusive spirit? After all the words 'Hindu' and 'Hindutva' are the indigenous synonyms of 'Indian' and 'Indianism'/'Hinduism.'

And the land of Hindus is Hindustan. That is why we have a number of institutions and organisations including Muslims having the word 'Hindu' in them like Hindustan Machine Tools, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, Hindustan Shipyard, newspapers like Hindustan Times and The Hindu (though this last newspaper tends to be anti-Hindu), and Jamaat-e-Islami Hind and Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind.

And didn't Muhammad Iqbal himself sing paeans to the same Hindustan in his patriotic song 'Sare jahan se accha, Hindositan hamara'? Likewise, don't we have the most patriotically galvanising slogan 'Jai Hind' handed down by Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose? Anyone with an objective sense of history knows that Hinduism is more of a culture and that it is a loose confederation of Indic faiths, since it doesn't rely on any single god, prophet or scripture.

The strength of RSS lies in its positive ideology and in its pracharaks who are personifications of simple living and high thinking and in its dedicated cadres. And its work is open and transparent and not cabalistic. Hence every right thinking person should hail and support RSS as the backbone of pan-Indian nationalism and culture.

Laxhmi Rajyam, Hyderabad

RSS should go for thorough introspection

The writer tried her level best to paint RSS with bright colours by obfuscating its real agenda of establishing Hindu supremacy in the country at the cost of communal harmony and brotherhood where majoritarianism, exclusivism and uniformity rather than pluralism, secularism and inclusiveness are the guiding principles (Why fear Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh? Jan 22).

Nobody has objection to people linked to RSS claiming themselves to be leading a life with simplicity, rendering social service and displaying patriotism. But, in a democracy, it is unbecoming of any organisation to call the people anti-nationals for not endorsing its ideology.

We now see an unprecedented level of protests across the country - acknowledged by even Supreme Court Chief Justice recently - which is certainly an outcome of controversial decisions such as changing citizenship laws by the Central government led by the BJP, the political arm of RSS, which amounts to discrimination on the basis of religion particularly against Muslims.

The shocking incidents taking place all over India - in the form of lynchings by cow vigilantes, students being thrashed in universities, writers and journalists being attacked and killed, censored movies being prevented from getting released and viewed, rapists and criminals being supported on religious lines and Godse being praised as a patriot - speak volumes of seeing everything through the lens of religion which is dangerously contributing to the ever increasing level of intolerance towards people for their difference of opinion, dissent, contrasting ideologies, criticism against government, artistic liberty and exercising the fundamental rights in the areas of voting, dietary habits, following a religion and pursuing a culture for which RSS guided current political discourse is obviously responsible.

Narne Raveendra Babu, Serilingampally, Hyderabad