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For the RSS, this revolt is a setback because it projects its self as the fountainhead of Hindutva. Its aim is to unite all Hindus in an exercise of transformation
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There is never a dull moment in Goa. As the State was preparing for Ganesh Chaturthi, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) plunged into a crisis in the State with a faction led by former chief, Subhash Velingkar, breaking away from the parent body to form an independent RSS, which will not take orders from Nagpur until the Assembly elections are completed. The die has been cast and hard stands have been taken. Velingkar and his faction, which is now aligned to the Bharatiya Bhasha Suraksha Manch (BBSM), have decided to fight the elections against the BJP and vowed to defeat it.
This revolt is unprecedented in the history of the RSS and there is no template on how to deal with it. Revolts in political parties are a dime a dozen and while the Congress was adept in dealing in it, it seems to have lost its touch. The Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh fiascos are proof of this inability to spot a problem and resolve it before it reaches boiling point. The BJP has also had its fair share of revolts. The old guard revolted when Narendra Modi was selected as the prime ministerial candidate, but it was contained after L K Advani was systematically side-lined. The Yeddyurappa revolt in Karnataka ended with the BJP losing its government in the State. However, these were all revolts in political parties. This is the first time the RSS is facing a revolt and the headache for Nagpur is that it has come close to an Assembly elections, which the BJP needs to win.
Velingkar has openly blamed Manohar Parrikar and Nitin Gadkari for his ouster and sought to drive a wedge in the BJP by saying that Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar was amenable to withdrawing grants to English medium primary schools run by the Diocesan Society of Education, but he is being stopped by Parrikar. The BJP stand on this issue is very clear -- grants to English primary schools will continue. The fight here is not about grants but between a forward looking BJP and the new RSS prant which wants to go back to the days of communal confrontation with minorities. Added to this mix is a personality clash between Parrikar and Velingkar. So it’s not really a clash of principles, as is being made out. It’s more like a difference in opinion with a dose of politics and personality-related issues. Quite a heady mix.
For the RSS, this revolt is a setback because it projects its self as the fountainhead of Hindutva. Its aim is to unite all Hindus in an exercise of transformation. In the march towards this goal it has widened its arms to include all casts and outcasts. However, the army-like discipline and unquestionable loyalty, both core value, now lie in tatters in Goa. The challenge before the RSS is to restore discipline, break the backbone of the BBSM and ensure the BJP has a smooth run in 2017.
