Conceived on the Vijaya Dashmi day by Hedgewar, the RSS celebrated its 75th birth anniversary recently amidst much fanfare and a massive display of khaki shorts and saffron flags in Agra. After all, its ardhangini (better half), the Bharatiya Janata Party, with which it has shared five decades of political companionship is firmly ensconced in power. And yet the tone was strident, not one after victory but one after defeat.

Consider the recent public speeches of the RSS Sarsanghchalak, Sudershan, first made in Nagpur on Dussehra day, and subsequently repeated in Agra, during the shivir. Born into Sanatan Dharma, the eternal quality of religion should have been obvious to him. He is also aware that Dussehra signifies ... cultural pluralism for the Hindus. They celebrate it ... in different forms: either Durga Puja for the Maithils and Bengalis or as the end of Ram Lila for those from the North. Yet in the most non- festive, non pluralistic fashion, Sudershan let out a virulent diatribe against the Christians: they must construct a 'Swadeshi church".

Religion, despite its changeless quality according to Sudershanji, suddenly bend to the dictates of a nation ... Little did Sudershanji realise the irony involved even as he failed to foresee its logical outcome: Yankee style mandirs for the NRI Hindus. And all this while Prime Minister Vajpayee calls for communal harmony even from the confines of his Breach Candy hospital.

The RSS chief's behaviour signals an organizational crisis ... All throughout its tumultuous history, the RSS, patiently but steadily, worked towards an alternative vision, that of the Hindu Rashtra. The aim of the Sangh, according to its constitution, is "to weld together the diverse groups within the Hindu Samaj and to revitalize and rejuvenate the same on the basis of its Dharma and Sanskriti."

This alternative vision appears diluted. Under the influence of over two dozen NDA partners, the BJP has begun developing its own agenda. Because of the compulsions of vote politics, the BJP is defining its own brand image. Its newly chosen Dalit president Bangaru Laxman, under direct instructions from the prime minister, has begun courting all minorities. The ideological conflict is as much on the economic front as in culture ... If politics is the art of setting agendas, then the pragmatic BJP leadership with its centrist platform is turning to be the hegemon, not the RSS. The latter feels threatened of losing its USP.

The RSS with its corporatist structure (essentially hierarchical. without ... elections) also feels rather uncomfortable with the BJP's democratic structure. In the case of the BJP, the pull from below is too much for the RSS bosses' push from above ...

Notwithstanding ... Congress's abdication, the RSS is not in a position to occupy the opposition space. For starters, the RSS is not a political party, it is more of a pressure group (although gigantic) but with a limited agenda. Even on the economic front, the RSS leadership admits that it needs at least two years to lay out a comprehensive plan of Swadeshi, for which Govindacharya seems to have been deputed full time. It has never contested elections directly although it has campaigned for political parties.

Others argue that the conflict is merely on the surface, with the moderate and the extremist wings of the Sangh Parivar only meant for outsiders ... The consequences of the conflict may be beneficial to the Sangh Parivar. But individuals are not always aware of the consequences of their actions ... A moderate positioning under political compulsions by BJP leaders would obviously. Cause ideological cleavage with the more extreme RSS.

Is this crisis going to blow over? Will the marriage stay intact? Or will it lead to divorce? Ever since the Bharatiya Jan Sangh was formed in 1951. the two organizations have cohabited through thick and thin. The RSS needs the BJP and vice versa. But the absence of choices, certainly in the case of the RSS, is likely to keep this marriage intact. It is already facing a crisis of recruitment ...

The campaign (of) adult literacy and the mushrooming of shishu mandirs . is already degenerating into an anti-Christian rhetoric ... Unless a new leadership does not completely revamp the organization, inject fresh ideas and a new vision, the present crisis might blow out of proportion and end up threatening the Parivar's numerous position .. (Source: The Indian Express, 19 October, 2000)