145;Vanvasis146; 038; conversions

In keeping with the RSS8217;s long-standing campaign against the so-called 8220;forcible conversions8221; of tribals to Christianity

In keeping with the RSS8217;s long-standing campaign against the so-called 8220;forcible conversions8221; of tribals to Christianity, the latest issue of Organiser devotes its entire front page to a report on a 8220;mammoth Vanvasi rally8221; in interior Orissa held this month as part of the ongoing birth centenary celebrations of M S Golwalkar. Those who addressed the rally included RSS chief K S Sudarshan, VHP president Ashok Singhal and the Shankaracharya of Goverdhan Peeth, Puri, Swami Nishchalananda Saraswati. Singhal demanded a total ban on religious conversions in India, Sudarshan extolled Golwalkar8217;s role in strengthening 8220;the country8217;s backbone8212;the Hindu society8221; and the Shankaracharya accused the Pope of being 8220;the most extensive violator of human rights8221; by advocating conversions.

The report, however, makes it clear that efforts to convert India8217;s tribals to Hindutva is being carried out with fervour. For instance, it mentions how the Orissa-based Swami Lakshmananda Saraswati 8220;has successfully awakened the spirit of Hindutva among the Vanvasis and drawn them away from the clutches of missionaries8221;. As part of the RSS8217;s consistent effort to introduce Hindu rituals in tribal religous practice, 8220;eight raths8221; dedicated to local goddesses carrying soil and water from eight different areas of the state, converged at the site to culminate in a yagna and the installation of a Shiva temple. The RSS, incidentally, always describes the tribals as 8220;vanvasis8221; rather than 8220;advisasis8221;8212;to underline their claim that all Hindus are indigenous and did not enter the subcontinent over millennia.

Marxists and market

The editorial under the above headline fulminates against the CPIM leadership for allegedly turning their backs on Marxism. The run-up to the assembly elections in Kerala and West Bengal 8220;have exposed the ideological bankruptcy of the Marxists as never before8221;. Referring to the Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee8217;s 8220;interesting confession8221; that his government was practising policies of capitalism and not socialism, the editorial wonders whether Bhattacharjee is 8220;out of sync8221; with his politburo. And its equivocal answer: 8220;Difficult to say8221;. But it has a lot to say on the CPIM8217;s 8220;somersault8221; in Kerala, where the party is allegedly hobnobbing with 8220;jehadi terrorist outfits8221; and 8220;cheering Manmohan Singh8221;. Lamenting 8220;the replacement of the radical jholawalas by the market-savvy mobile brigade8221;, it rephrases that tired cliche: 8220;Power corrupts and power without responsibility corrupts absolutely8221;.

Quotable quotes

Given the political compulsions, neither the BJP, nor RSS can openly attack the idea of extending reservations for OBCs to educational institutions. But Organiser columnists face no such constraints. Sandhya Jain insists that 8220;quota students8221; seldom make the grade and suffer as a consequence no data is offered to back this claim. Arjun Singh8217;s 8220;ill-thought out scheme8221; will thus be 8220;detrimental to all8221;. Shyam Khosla goes further. Since no party will take a stand against reservations, civil society 8220;should take the lead to call the politicians8217; bluff and bluntly tell the bitter truth. Let it be stated unambiguously that the quota regime is insidious and reflects a negative approach. Quotas rarely lead to empowerment, but certainly undermine excellence and encourage mediocrity8221;.

Tailpiece

With astrologers having let them down repeatedly, the BJP leadership8212; which once expected the UPA government to fall within six months8212;is no longer willing to wager on its longevity. When an Organiser correspondent trailing his yatra asked LK Advani whether the BJP is getting ready for a mid-term poll, the Leader of the Opposition said: 8220;I don8217;t see a mid-term poll. Although I don8217;t rule out the possibility. This government may last full tenure; it may collapse any time.8221; Not much insight there, or foresight.

Compiled by Manini Chatterjee