Nosy Nagpur

MARCH 13: The change of guard at Hedgewar Bhavan, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) headquarters in Nagpur, has given rise to fears of...

MARCH 13: The change of guard at Hedgewar Bhavan, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) headquarters in Nagpur, has given rise to fears of another wave of swadeshi pressure on the Central government. At his widely reported first press conference, the new RSS sarsanghchalak, K. S.

Sudarshan, appeared to criticise the Vajpayee government’s economic policies saying they should have more swadeshi content. Was this the new man trying to make his presence felt or are they well thought out statements reflecting a political strategy? It is hard to say. These are early days yet and Nagpur will have to be watched for more definite signs of the kind of role Sudarshan intends the RSS to play. But one thing seems clear. If this so-called cultural organisation decides to take up the swadeshi banner and adopt agitational or political tactics, it will be a more formidable antagonist of the reform agenda than the Swadeshi Jagran Manch proved to be during its noisy campaigns because of the influence the RSS wields on thehearts and minds of the BJP and several senior ministers in the Central government.

The RSS cannot be accused of changing its colours. It was never a strong advocate of economic reform and trade liberalisation but under its former chief, Rajendra Singh, seemed to reconcile itself to the changes the National Democratic Alliance was bringing about. But two things may have precipitated a more active stance. One is the seemingly rapid pace at which the Vajpayee government has been opening up the economy. In particular, there are the measures to attract foreign investment such as the higher ceiling of 40 per cent for foreign portfolio investment and the agreement with the US to lift quantitative restrictions on a number of imported goods well ahead of WTO deadlines. These moves run counter to swadeshi economics, a vaguely formulated set of ideas which owe more to gut instinct that rigorous thought. More importantly such moves have caused concern in sections of business and industry and it is their interests the RSS may be intending to represent from the swadeshi platform.

The second development which foretells more RSS activism is, of course, the recent series of political setba-cks. In Gujarat Keshubhai Patel was compelled to withdraw a controversial pro-RSS circular; in Bihar the BJP-led coalition’s highly dubious attempts to replace Laloo Prasad Yadav were defeated for the third time; and in the last round of Assembly elections the BJP was outmanoeuvred by regional parties. Nagpur will not be alone in coming to the conclusion that more muscular tactics, more self-defining action, are called for to improve the Sangh Parivar’s prospects. Since the RSS’s membership drive is flagging â€“government employees cannot join up and young people seem uninterested â€“ a not unimportant consideration is mobilising support from all those, the unemployed and others whose lives have not improved as yet. It is ironical that RSS leaders are voicing concern for the poor and recalling Gandhian concepts. If Vajpayee does not handle the RSS shrewdly and firmly he may well find Nagpur on the sameside, albeit for very different reasons, as the Congress and Left parties.