Dr Duggaraju Srinivasa Rao
Ideologically opposing organizations are incidentally founded in the same year, in India, of 1925 and they are celebrating their centenary in contrast, one in very high note and the other in a lukewarm fashion. They didn’t born as competitor to the other but different kind of prevailing situations made them to launch in the same year. Majority of the founding members of both those organizations were associated with the Congress, then the only political party opposing the colonial rule, but differed with the ways and means being adopted by then Congress leadership. The two organizations have their own contrasting ideology, structure and leadership often clashing with each other in the field but steering their own paths to establish a space for them and attract new generations. Their contrasting growth, their final impact on the politics of India their success and setbacks are worth analyzing.
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the Hindu culture, heritage, patriotic, centric NGO was founded on the Vijayadasami day in central Indian city of Nagpur with a saffron flag as the inspiration and the Communist party of India (CPI), as a political party, was started in western India city of Kanpur, a day after the Christmas celebrations with a Red flag. Thus their colour symbolism was also contrast. At that time the Congress was leading the freedom movement under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi. In fact CPI took shape in Soviet Union city of Tashkent five years earlier and reborn on Indian soil in 1925 with the objective of taking India to the Russian inspired communistic Red umbrella. CPI was inspired by the 1917 Russian revolution led by Lenin. Its outlook is not nationalistic but internationality as they thought India will not qualify to be a nation under the European thought but it is conglomeration of groups speaking different languages. So Indian nationalism was not in the Communist agenda at the time of its founding. In contrast the RSS India first in its outlook and its object was to awaken the youth to know about the greatness of Bharat as a nation, having over five thousand year recorded culture and history. Rooted in the glory of its past its object was to unite the majority community in India, the Hindus to feel proud of their legacy and protect that legacy through the selfless service to the nation and also protecting it from the foreign inspired religions and cultures. Unifying the entire Hindu community forgetting their internal divisions was the declared motto, as the founder of RSS Dr Hedgewar believed Hindu divisive society as the root cause for the thousands of years of slavery, first by Muslim invaders and then by the Europe colonial rulers.
CPI had a Soviet Model and Karl Marx teachings to follow and spread communistic message and that party, initially, succeeded in attracting the Indian youth to its fold. RSS, on the other hand was without any model to follow so it took almost two decades for it to develop a firm track to run. But once the path was established RSS outpaced many other contemporary organizations and also political parties to stand as number one on many fronts. RSS was never seen as challenge the established hegemony of Congress or to the budding Communists. Even when RSS started its own political outfit, the Jana Sangh, both Congress and Communist parties perceived it as a threat. Their view was right till Congress lost the post-emergency elections of 1977 followed by the impressive gains for regional parties in all the states and coalition era started at the Centre trough Fronts under different labels.
Jan Sangh, once merged with Janata Party, re-borne as BJP and turned as agenda setter in national politics pushing the Communists to the periphery. This was possible because of the nationwide network built by RSS. Its cadre turned out to be the ear and the pulse finders of society and that feed back gave them the time and thought for political strategies. Meanwhile the Communists suffered with mindless debates on the ideological issues ignoring the peoples’ issues thus getting weakened in politics. Starting from the first split on the very day of its founding, on the naming of the party, the splits in the party are endless. 1965 split was the major one that gave birth to CMP, then 1969 extremists group moved into forests and continued to form splinter groups.
Tragedy of Communists was compounded as the space they vacated due to their weakness was filled by RSS affiliates. Originally Communists are in the forefront of the working class, trade unions were under their control. The Communists lead trade unions’ strategy of strikes, bundhs forced the closure of industries in Kolkata, its stronghold. The workers lost jobs and are forced to migrate to other states. Daily agitations of Communists has not shown the solutions to the working class. They are fed up with high dose of Communist rhetoric not solving the food, shelter, fair wage problems of workers. This space in trade unions was taken over by RSS affiliate BMS. The student union are slowly slipping from SFI and AIASFI of Communists and ABVP, an RSS affiliate, is capturing the image of students.
The media, the intellectual forums which were once dominated by the Communist minded personalities are taken over by the vocal persons with RSS ideology. The Left thinkers who used to set societal agenda and post questions are now put in defensive mode as the counter questioning has started from the Right intellectuals. The Left’s way of writing the history book, building a narrative of India being a regressive society and presenting Indian society as stratified, archaic, oppressive in the international forums thus damaging the image of the nation stood exposed. Hitherto unchallenged, Left now faces many challengers in all fronts with alternative narrations built and spread with active support of the RSS. The Communist’s appeasement of minority religions especially Muslims under the guise of secularism, use of minority religions as their vote bank and counter accusing RSS is any more accepted by the society. Hence the political shrinkage of all shades of Reds. Barring the last Left bastion of Kerala, the Communists are not so confident of winning a single seat on their own in any part of the country. The call for opposition unity, facilitating the formation of UPA or I.N.D.I.A by the Left is more for retaining their relevance in the electoral politics.
The economic reforms initiated by the Congress government lead by P.V. Narasimha Rao has weaned away the youth from the communism, socialism rhetoric and made them career centric. The IT revolution and job opportunities for the meritorious, irrespective of the caste, gender, social status, in the private sector resulted in urbanization, social mobility of rural communities. The educated generation turned more progressive in thoughts and deeds not ready to accept lectures from Communists. RSS inculcated nationalistic, cultural proudness attracted the Indian you and made them to take a Right turn. Left is left in the lurch.
As both RSS and Communists are completing the hundred years of their mission, the winner, apparently, is Right, and this statement may not be acceptable for the Left. The difference between the Right’s success and Left’s failure is that Communistic ideology is frozen without scope to reform. Communists are not ready for a review their mistakes that lead to its fall. Rightists changed their tactics with time developed self-correction mechanism through frequent deliberations. A commanding authority is there for the Right in the form of RSS and in the absence of a moderating personalities in Left, the difference of opinion is leading to split in the Communist organizations even for the slightest difference.
The century that just passed certainly belongs to the Right. Will the Left agree on that and fight back or leave the field fully to Right to score at will be watched keenly at the deliberation they are going to have in their centenary celebrations.
(Author is retired professor. Views expressed are personal.)
