The Wire Staff 
New Delhi: It is a crime to be weak, and society has to be strong, alert and stay organised to counter the challenges the world is witnessing today, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat said in a speech at Nagpur on Saturday (October 12) on the occasion of Vijayadashami, which is celebrated by Hindus as part of a nine-day festival.
“If we are weak, if we are unorganised, that means we are inviting atrocities [upon us] … so wherever we are, being organised there, being strong is something we will have to do,” he said.
Bhagwat said this in the context of violence against Hindus in Bangladesh. His statements came against the backdrop of the theft from a Hindu temple and an attack on a Durga Puja pandal that have been reported in Bangladesh over the last few days, as well as reports of attacks of Hindus after the regime change in that country in August.
The sarsanghchalak also claimed that many border areas, including the states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu along the coastal border of India, were “disturbed”.
‘Being weak is a crime’
Bhagwat claimed that selfishness and arrogance were causing a lot of conflicts today.
“The war that Hamas has waged on Israel, how extensive it will now be and who will burn in these fires and what issues this will cause in the world, everyone is worried about that now,” he said.
Meanwhile, India has been advancing in many spheres including technology and education, and even the elections in Jammu and Kashmir were conducted peacefully, he said.
“Across the world, India’s credit and prestige has increased. The world accepts our concept of vasudhaiva kutumbakam,” he claimed.
India’s advancement is happening through everyone, including the government, administration, youth, farmers and scientists, Bhagwat said, adding that there are some challenges.
One challenge is that there are “forces” that do not want India to advance. These forces will try to hamper India’s progress, and that is happening, he claimed. This challenge is not one that just the RSS alone, the Hindu society or even India faces, but one arising across the world, he said.
He then went on to cite the example of Bangladesh.
“Look at what happened in our neighbouring Bangladesh,” Bhagwat said. “Such a big mischief cannot happen due to just immediate issues … you can discuss the reasons for it … But due to the mischief there, the atrocities that keep happening over and over again to the Hindus there, this is a repetition of the tradition that has been happening there,” Bhagwat claimed.
“… If there is any trouble somewhere, as long as this fanaticism to take out anger on the weak or the vulnerable remains, a sword of danger will be hanging over not just Hindus but all minorities there. They need help. From all Hindus across the world, from the government of India.
“But this brings to mind, and should bring to mind – for Hindu society as well – that being weak is a crime. If we are weak, if we are unorganised, that means we are inviting atrocities [upon us] … so wherever we are, being organised there, being strong is something we will have to do … we don’t have to make enemies of anyone or be violent.”
Bhagwat also claimed that there was talk in Bangladesh that there was a danger to their country from India and, therefore, Bangladeshis had to side with Pakistan as the latter was their authentic friend.
“Such kind of talk is happening in the same Bangladesh for whose creation India gave full support, the Bangladesh with which India has never discriminated against and never will,” he claimed.
Invaders of institutions
“The wish is that such things happen in India also, because if India becomes great, the shop of selfishness will close. Deep state, wokism, cultural Marxism, such terms are in discussion … this goes against all cultural traditions across the world,” he said.
The first technique of such people, he said, was to invade institutions: capture organisations such as education, the media and others, and spread their thoughts through them.
“Creating conflict and teaching disregard … now wars are like this, a mantr viplav … This is called alternate politics … This is not a conspiracy theory I am talking about, there are books being written about this. All across India, especially along the borders, we can see what is happening due to this … But we will have to stop this and the society will have to come together to fight this, plan it under the legal system, because we have to protect our society.”
What happened in Kolkata in the R.G. Kar Hospital was “shameful” and not an isolated event, he also said.
While we should make sure such incidents do not happen and ensure protection, the criminals were protected and this was the result of an alliance between politics and crime, Bhagwat claimed.
He went on to add that many areas, especially border areas, were “disturbed”, be they Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh; Kerala and Tamil Nadu on the coastal border; and the entire northeast from Bihar and eastward to Manipur. He attributed this to a corruption of culture and a feeling of separation among people.
He said there was also a situation where fanaticism was being incited.
The sarsanghchalak then spoke about unrest, including in cases perpetrated by people who “blame the entire community for what someone somewhere did”.
Bhagwat also spoke of reported cases of stone-pelting on Ganesha festival processions and said that while the police do act in many cases, “society must suffer until they act”.
“So, society should be prepared … hooliganism should not be permitted,” he said. The police should only take action … but until they come, we have to save our lives. So society has to stay alert … I am not trying to make people fight or scare them. But such are the circumstances.”
He went on to add that families and individuals should be friends with people across all social and caste classes, and that only this friendship would bring harmony in society. People should discuss how to lift their classes, and what threats are there and how to save themselves from these, he said.
But along with this, two more things needed to be discussed, he added. One, what is that issue that we can address together to better society; and another, how we can together help lift the weak jatis or castes. People from across castes must discuss this, he claimed.
“We are all connected,” he said.
He said there would always be complaints or concerns in a country like India because of the differences among people and the different situations that they are in. But these differences do not isolate but make us unique and special, he claimed.
So taking such differences and fighting amongst ourselves is not right; as is holding an entire community accountable for what one person from that community did, Bhagwat said.
The weak cannot uphold dharma and no one asks them about anything, Bhagwat said. There are so many different environments in the world and only a strong society can counter challenges, he added.
Mediums that affect the thinking of people need to be mindful of the good values that should be inculcated in a society, he added. For instance, the kind of content that appears on OTT platforms cannot even be spoken about for it is so “disgusting”, he claimed. This too needs to be regulated by law, he said, as it was degrading society.
Another kind of environment that’s a concern
Another question is whether nature will remain or not, Bhagwat said.
“We are seeing that rainfall has changed. It comes at odd times or not at all, and when it does, it pours with intensity,” he said.
“Why does this happen? The whole world is experiencing this. We are talking about this in our country too. Our soil is damaged, our water is impure, there are chemicals in our vegetables and this is causing health issues, seasons are changing, jungles are felled, greenery is gone, rivers have dried up … look at the news over the last two years.”
So we need to show “gratitude and friendship” to the environment through policies such as organic farming and make a similar ideological plan and implement it in a decentralised way due to the differences across the country, he added.
The RSS chief suggested that people do three small things – save water and not waste it; reduce plastic use and eliminate single-use plastic entirely; and plant trees even in one’s backyard and increase greenery in homes and streets. He also suggested planting native trees and not exotic ones that cause illnesses such as breathing difficulties.