Anandiben Patel made way for Narendra Modi-Amit Shah’s choice and RSS loyalist Vijay Rupani for Gujarat chief minister as the Dalit agitation and Patidar protests threatened to singe the BJP in the state. One of Rupani’s priorities is to reach out to Dalits, with RSS working to defuse blowback from brutal violence cow vigilante groups. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had come down heavily on Saturday against cow activism.
To assuage the community, RSS says it was quick to dissociate itself from the incident of Dalit’s beating in Una, Gujarat. As politicians made a beeline for the victims’ village, RSS also brought in sants to hold a samellan there.
“Our people reached out to the family and the community. A statement was issued by the RSS Gujarat unit,” an RSS leader said. As the issue continues to gain traction with rallies by Dalits and political leaders turning it into an election issue, sources said RSS may come out with another statement.
RSS leaders cite figures to suggest that its acceptance and reach among youngsters continues to rise. Between January-June last year, the organisation received 31,000 recruitment requests online. This year, the figure for same period jumped to 57,000. The number of shakhas also rose sharply from 33,500 shakhas in 2010 to 34,800 in 2012, and from 39,400 in 2014 to over 50,700 shakhas in 2016.
“People still trust the Sangh despite efforts by some political groups to create an impression otherwise. The Sangh’s work is growing,” an RSS leader told The Sunday Standard.
During the birth centenary celebrations of RSS’ second chief M S Gowalkar in 2006, RSS began to reach out to Dalits through its Samajik Samrasta (social harmony) programme. Now, RSS says its links with the Dalit community runs deep.
RSS had started a massive Dalit outreach programme by saying that village wells, temples and cremation grounds should be used by all communities, even as it hailed B R Ambedkar’s legacy by holding seminars and taking his philosophy to the grassroots.
Some in the RSS felt that work done by the organisation among Dalits gets affected by “excessive publicity”, which involves Hindutva groups that may not be affiliated to the Sangh Parivar. “Many such incidents happened earlier as well. The media focusses too much on to them, and some try to give them colour by linking them to the RSS,” an RSS leader said.