(Reproduced from: The Economic and Political Weekly August 2, 2003)
Hindutva's Entry into a 'Hindu Province': Early Years of RSS in Orissa Orissa
retains some unique features of Hinduism manifested in particular in
the Jagannath cult. Structures of pre-colonial legitimacy were
reinvented by colonialism, acquiesced to by the nationalist and the
post-colonial leadership/discourses and appropriated by an
identity-seeking Hindu upper caste-middle class. Together these offered
a congenial climate for the development of Hindutva. This paper broadly
outlines the cultural, social and political climate of Orissa at the
time of the entry of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and examines
how this organisation, intelligently and strategically, interacted with
and adapted itself to the peculiar conditions in this 'Hindu province'
during the early years of its existence in the state. by Pralay Kanungo Various
regional traditions constitute the core of India’s tradition. A region
is not just a specific physical entity. More importantly, it involves
historical, linguistic, cultural, social, structural, and/or the
interrelations among these kind of variables.1 Hence, it becomes
important to understand how the homogenising and overarching ideology
of Hindutva manifests itself in different regional contexts. Jaffrelot2
makes an exhaustive and excellent study of central India, while Hansen3
focuses on Maharashtra, Jayaprasad4 on Kerala, and Rudd5 on West
Bengal. Though Hindutva has made deep inroads into Orissa, there is
hardly any study explaining how and why this phenomenon has had such an
immense impact on this region. This paper broadly outlines the
cultural, social and political climate of Orissa at the time of the
entry of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the fountainhead of
Hindutva, and examines how this organisation has, intelligently and
strategically, interacted with and adapted itself to the peculiar
conditions in this ‘Hindu province’ during the early years of its
existence in the state.
I
Orissa: Diversities and Contradictions in a ‘Hindu Province’
The
formal starting point of this history is 1936, when the province was
created, uniting most of the Oriya-speaking territories. Since this
coincided with the carving out of a separate Muslim province ó Sindh ó
it appeared as if Orissa had been created only to appease the Hindus.6
Indeed, this act had wider intellectual meaning for a section of the
Oriya middle class, which not only embraced it but also internalised
it.7 The colonial census, which polarised religious identities in the
subcontinent,8 indicated that Orissa was predominantly Hindu. This was
emphatically reinforced by the census department of free India as well;
the 1991 Census puts the ‘Hindu’ population of Orissa at 94.67 per
cent.9 Thus, working on these assumptions ó colonial categorisations,
the perceptions of a section of the Oriya middle class, and free
India’s census assessments ó the RSS regards Orissa as a ‘Hindu
province’. Hence, it is pertinent to outline some of the features of
this ‘Hindu province’ and examine how Hindutva fits in here.
The
early history of modern Orissa remains rather obscure. The territories
that constitute the present-day state were known under various names in
different historical periods: Utkala, Kalinga, Kosala and Udra.
Orissa’s topography and geography shaped its history to a large extent.
It comprises mainly two regions: the coastal plains and the highlands.
If the forests and mountains of the highlands made the region
inaccessible, the river system of the coastal plains was not friendly
either. This gave the impression that Orissa 'was always terra
incognita, by reason of its geographical position, and local
circumstances.'10 Besides this, in comparison to north and central
India, parts of Orissa came under ‘Muslim rule’ three centuries later,
in 1568. Even the victorious general of Akbar reportedly did not find
it a 'fit subject for conquest, or for schemes of human ambition.'11
Thus, Orissa’s geography and topography helped to preserve its
indigenous cultural identity to a large extent. But at the same time it
remained very much connected with its neighbours, absorbing a series of
cultural waves from the north and the south into its indigenous
culture; Aryans and dravidians both intermingled here with the natives.
The Sadhabas of coastal Orissa, a sea-faring community, established
enduring commercial as well as cultural links with south-east Asia,
particularly Indonesia.
The Kapila Samhita describes Orissa as
the ‘Holy Land’ of the Hindus: 'Of all the regions of the earth India
is the noblest; and of all the countries of India, Utkala boasts the
highest renown. From end to end it is one vast region of pilgrimage.'12
But Orissa had also experienced the strong influence of both Jainism
and Buddhism. The Khandagiri and Udayagiri inscriptions reveal that
Jainism flourished here much before the advent of Buddhism. According
to Jain literary sources, the king of Kalinga was a disciple of
Parsavnatha (eighth century BC), the 23rd Tirthankara, and Mahavira
himself had visited Kalinga. Jainism reached its peak during
Kharavela’s reign (first century BC), after which it slowly died out.
Buddhist literature claims that after the Buddha’s death, one of his
tooth-relics was carried to the capital of Kalinga. Buddhism spread
extensively in Orissa after the Kalinga War (third century BC) and
remained predominant till the fifth century AD, particularly in Odra,
Kalinga and Kosala, and then gradually disappeared by the 10th century
AD. Saivism triumphed over Buddhism in the fifth century AD; an Asokan
pillar was converted into a colossal shivling at the Bhaskaresvra
temple in Bhubaneswar, indicating a violent struggle between the two
faiths. The Madalapanji, the chronicle of the Jagannath temple, records
that the Ganga rulers, the great patrons of brahmanical Hinduism,
persecuted the Buddhists. Along with persecuting non-Hindus, attempts
were also made to assimilate them into the Hindu fold. Jayadeva’s Gita
Govinda (12th century AD) describes the Buddha as the ninth incarnation
of Vishnu. Although both Buddhism and Jainism completely disappeared
from Orissa, their legacy of non-violence and religious meditation
deeply influenced its people.
Consequently, Hinduism in Orissa
had never been a monolithic discourse; rather it represented a
confluence of diverse cults and sects, such as Saivism, Vaishnavism,
Tantrism and Saktism, reflecting a marvellous mosaic: sanskritic and
non-sanskritic, all-India and regional/local,13 textual and popular,14
urban and village.15 The coastal region and the river valleys were home
to innumerable Hindu temples and monuments, all testifying to the
magnificent indigenous architectural genius. This assertive sub-region
had strictly upheld brahmanical traditions and the rituals of
ceremonial purity. It was also home to many repugnant superstitions16
and obnoxious caste prejudices for centuries; the dominant caste Hindus
like the brahmanas, the karanas, and the khandayats controlled the
lives of the subaltern lower castes and the untouchables.17
In
contrast to the coastal plains, a fairly large adivasi population
lived/lives in the forests and highland areas throughout Orissa’s
history. Even today, the state has as many as 62 adivasi communities,
which constitute roughly one-fourth of its population.18 The adivasi
population is substantial in districts like Mayurbhanj (57.9 per cent),
Koraput (54.3 per cent), Sundargarh (50.7 per cent), Keonjhar (44.5 per
cent) and Phulbani (37.3 per cent). These adivasis have their own
pantheon of gods and goddesses and their own shamanic practices.19 In
contrast to the brahmanical vedic rituals, some adivasi communities
like the khonds practised ‘meriah’ or human sacrifices till the
mid-19th century. Hence, in Orissa the gods of brahmanism are
worshipped along with the minor deities outside the brahmanical
pantheon, and the great traditions coexist with the little traditions.
The
most significant feature, however, is the unique position of Jagannath
of Puri in the religio-cultural and political traditions of Orissa.
Although the cult has a rather recent history, its ‘ancientness’ is
projected since it is a major component of the process of
homogenisation.20 Though Jagannath is identified as ‘Orissa’s god/cult’
there are major complexities that need to be delineated. First,
although Puri is the chief seat of brahmanical power in eastern India,
Jagannath has a strong adivasi connection.21 It is widely believed that
originally the savaras worshipped Jagannath as Nilamadhaba in the
Nilakandara (Blue Caves). The iconography also speaks of the adivasi
origin of the ‘trinity’ ó Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra. Further,
the etymology of Madalapanji suggests its roots in the Mundari word
‘mudala’, which means 'to establish with evidence, confront with
proof.'22 Thus, the Hinduisation of Orissa needs to be seen as a
two-way process in which not only were some features of Hinduism
incorporated into the adivasi cults, but also vice versa. Second, the
decision of Anantavarman Codaganga, a saivite, to build a temple in
Puri in the middle of the 12th century for Jagannath, an incarnation of
Vishnu, was based on political considerations; it was a pragmatic
response to the rising tide of Vaisnavism in Orissa. Thus, from its
very inception, the cult of Jagannath was conceived of as a
legitimising agency for the rulers of Orissa.23 Eventually,
Aanangabhima III dedicated the Orissan empire to Jagannath and
proclaimed himself as god’s ‘deputy’ (‘rautta’). Jagannath was elevated
as ‘the king of the kingdom of Orissa’ (Madalapanji); a similar
description is found in the ‘Kanchi Kaveri’, the legendary poem of
Purusottama Das. Not surprisingly, all those who ruled Orissa ó the
Mughals, the Marathas and the English East India Company ó sought
legitimacy and hegemonic control by acknowledging the supra-temporal
authority of Jagannath, at least notionally.
The emergence of
a virtual ‘common sense’ (going back to the colonial period) makes it
appear that since the Afghan subjugation of Orissa in 1568, Jagannath
emerged as a key player in the political arena of the province. After
this ‘drubbing’, the Oriya-speaking territory was divided into several
political and administrative units, which split further during the
periods of Mughal, Maratha and British rule. However, throughout these
centuries Jagannath remained a potent rallying symbol, reinforcing the
collective regional and ethnic identity of the territorially fragmented
Oriyas. Consequently, an identity incorporating Jagannath as a crucial
unifying element took shape.24
Inventing Identities: ‘Oriya’, ‘Hindu’ and ‘Indian’
The
quest for uniting the Oriya-speaking areas into a single territory
gained momentum in the late 19th century. The search for Oriya identity
found a powerful expression in Oriya literature and the Oriya language
agitation. Two other variants of identity also emerged during this
period: ‘Hindu’ identity and ‘Indian’ identity. Thus, Orissa
experienced the interplay of three types of identities that developed
around three forms of nationalism: Oriya, Hindu and Indian.25
Radhanath
Ray’s epic Mahajatra and Ramashankar Ray’s play ‘Kanchi Kaveri’
projected a sort of vague ‘Hindu’ nation. As Orissa had a predominantly
Hindu population and since Jagannath was a powerful symbol of Oriya
identity, obviously, these perceptions did not much distinguish between
Hindu nationalism and Oriya nationalism. Even the advocates of Indian
nationalism in Orissa, like Gopabandhu Das, swore by Jagannath. As Das
wrote: 'If the world were a tank and India a lotus in it, then the
filament of that lotus would be the holy Nilacala (Puri).'26
Gopabandhu, a devout Hindu, became president of the Hindu Mahasabha’s
Orissa branch in 1927. For Madhusudan Das, an ardent champion of Oriya
nationalism, Jagannath was not merely a Hindu deity but was also an
embodiment of the Oriya nation. Das, a Christian, was twice elected
president of the All India Christian Association. However, his
religious faith did not stand in the way of his efforts to unify the
Oriya-speaking tracts, with Jagannath as the pivot. In 1928 he
passionately appealed to all Oriyas to utter in one voice, ‘Save us,
Lord Jagannath’ and to pray to him to end the darkness and usher in a
period of progress and prosperity.
Thus, all the three variants of
identity complemented each other and were woven around Jagannath and
his cult. Consequently, Oriya identity was shaped not only by the Hindu
religion but also by a host of other elements, including Orissa’s
specific regional and cultural traditions in which Jagannath was made
to play a crucial symbolic role. This identity could be harmonised with
the broader ‘Indian’ identity as well as with the search for autonomy
that saw the formation of the province.27 This symbolically freighted
tradition has continuities even today and remains an important
component of the process of political mobilisation.28
Non-Hindu Others
Let
us now examine the way in which non-Hindus have been located in the
social landscape of Orissa, a feature that perhaps explains why the
task of the RSS has been made relatively easy. What we will illustrate
here is the way in which a history of Orissa has been virtually
invented, and also examine the problems and complexities raised by
drawing upon colonialist and nationalist representations in the
reconstruction of this history.
Muslims
As this
history reveals, Orissa’s permanent relationship with Muslims began
only in 1568 when Kalapahar, the general of the Afghan ruler of Bengal,
defeated Mukunda Deva, the last independent Hindu king of Orissa. The
Mughals replaced the Afghans in 1578 and continued to rule for about
two centuries.29 In 1751, Orissa passed into the hands of the
Marathas30 and it finally came under the British in 1803. The ‘Muslim
conquest’ of Orissa was not only late chronologically compared to other
regions of India, but it also failed to attain the strength and
permanence as it did in neighbouring Bengal.31 Islam failed to
penetrate among the native population. The minuscule Muslim population
of Orissa included a few people of Afghan descent, but the rest were
largely the descendants of common soldiers, camp followers and
low-caste converts.32 It does not appear, however, 'that the
Mohammedans or any other invaders, ever completely occupied or
colonised the province, which still remains one of those in which Hindu
manners are preserved in their greatest purity, and where the smallest
proportion of Mohammedans is to be found'.33 Thus, unlike Bengal, 34 in
Orissa, conversions did not take place on a large scale; Islam could
make few converts in this ‘stronghold of Hinduism’. As this history
shows, during the two centuries of the Muslim occupation of Orissa,
Lord Jagannath and Puri were subjected to attacks beginning from the
time of Kalapahar,35 and continuing under Mutquad Khan (during Shah
Jahan’s reign) and Taki Khan (during Aurangzeb’s reign). Nevertheless,
it should be borne in mind that temples had been the natural sites for
the contestation of kingly authority well before the advent of the
Turks in India.36 In the 1460s, Kapilendra, the founder of the
Suryavamshi Gajapati dynasty in Orissa, sacked both Saiva and Vaisnava
temples in the Kaveri delta in the course of conquering the Tamil
country.37 Thus, an act of temple desecration sometimes was also an act
of asserting power over the enemy king.
Moreover, there were
exceptions, even during the period of ‘Muslim’ rule. The Mughal
emperors, from Akbar onwards, began to treat temples within their
sovereign territory as state property and undertook to protect both the
physical structures as well as their brahman functionaries.38 Akbar’s
commander Mansingh forced the Afghans to undertake a guarantee not to
attack the Jagannath temple. Mansingh’s wife built the Mukti Mandap,
the seat of brahman authority, inside the temple. Mir Habib, the
confidant of Murshid Quli Khan, also promoted the cause of the
Jagannath Temple. Although he embraced Islam, the Raja of Khurda Rama
Chandra Deva II (18th century) tried to protect Jagannath from falling
into the hands of the invading army of the Subedar of Bengal, Bihar and
Orissa. Interestingly, as the Madalapanji records, he was allowed to
perform ritual services to Jagannath despite being a convert.
Moreover,
Sufism gained popularity in Orissa and led to the emergence of the
Satya-Pir tradition.39 Even today Hindus worship Satyanarayan and Pir
together, an example of the synthesis of Hinduism and Sufism in the
province.40 Large numbers of Hindus visit Sufi shrines like Kadam Rasul
in Cuttack and Bukhari Sahib in Kaipadar, near Khurda. Even today one
can see a few wandering fakirs, the Sufi followers, who have been
unfortunately forced into begging. ‘Muslim’ rule also left an indelible
imprint on Oriya language and literature. Many Persian and Arabic words
remained foreign no longer and were very much internalised by Oriya
writers and readers.41 Before the 18th century, their use by Oriya
writers was negligible, probably for two reasons: either because of
their bitterness towards Muslim rule or due to their insufficient
knowledge of these languages. However, in the late 18th century they
began using these words more frequently. Fakirmohan Senapati, the
father of modern Oriya literature, used many Persian and Arabic words
like ‘mamla’, ‘chalan’, ‘laik’, ‘gafliyati’, ‘admi’, ‘daulat’,
‘mehenat’, ‘khod’, ‘malik’, ‘babad’, ‘khatar’, ‘dastakhat’, ‘lash’,
‘pesh’, ‘taraf’, ‘khalas’, ‘tadarakh’, ‘ustad’, and ‘meherbani’ in his
novels and stories.42 Salbeg, a very popular Oriya poet, who had a
Mughal (Muslim) father and a Brahman mother, composed innumerable
bhajans dedicated to Jagannath, which are recited every morning at the
Jagannath temple even today.
Furthermore, the Hindu-Muslim
relationship was not one-sided. Muslims, who were mainly local
converts, continued to observe some of their old religio-cultural
practices. Though the urban Muslims consciously adopted Persian, the
Muslims of rural Orissa retained Oriya as their mother tongue. Even the
Persian used by the urban Muslims was heavily loaded with Oriya, thus
creating a distinct local variant of Persian. At certain places Muslims
continued (and still continue) to be associated with certain Hindu
religious practices. For instance, during Durga Puja, the ‘katwal’ of
Tapang in Khurda district, a Muslim, actively participates in the Hindu
rituals. Sporting a ‘pagri’ and a ‘tilak’, he leads the religious
procession to his home where the goddess accepts ‘bhoga’ (offerings).
These
instances of a syncretic culture do not of course deny the occasional
assertion of ‘Hindu’ identity over the Muslims. However, Hindus and
Muslims by and large lived in peace and harmony in Orissa. In contrast,
the rationale of Hindutva is primarily based upon the reification of
enemy symbols: the demonisation of minorities like the Muslims and the
Christians as the ‘other’. As the Muslim population is very small in
Orissa, Hindutva does not find here a tailor-made ground for its easy
propagation, prompting the RSS to assert that its expansion in Orissa
is not based on an anti-Muslim thrust. The Orissa unit claims to be
more positive and constructive in its approach than its counterparts in
other provinces where Muslims are found in substantial numbers.43
However, this projection seems to be only partially true if one closely
examines the history of the various stages in the evolution of Hindutva
in Orissa.
Christians
Coastal Orissa came in contact
with Christian missionaries towards the end of the 18th century when it
became a maritime centre for European traders ó English, French, Dutch,
Danes and Portuguese. A Catholic church came up in Jaleswar and a
Wesleyan church in Ganjam. The Serampore missionaries of Bengal
translated the New Testament and a few other Christian tracts into
Oriya and sent a Bengali convert to Cuttack and Puri to distribute
literature and preach Christianity, but with no success.
When
the British took control of Orissa from the Marathas in 1803, Lord
Wellesley, the governor general, issued instructions 'to employ every
possible precaution to preserve the respect due to the Pagoda, and to
the religious prejudices of the brahmins and the pilgrims.'44 The
British were pragmatic enough to take over the ‘superintendence and
management’ of the Puri temple and to continue with the Maratha
practice of collecting the pilgrim tax. The missionaries, on the other
hand, vehemently opposed the government’s association with the temple
and put constant pressure on it to sever its connection with idolatry.
They ridiculed the pilgrimage to Jagannath as ‘the greatest scourge’
and deplored the gruesome acts of self-immolation and the many deaths
that occurred during the car festival, citing highly exaggerated
statistics. To them, Jagannath epitomised ‘vice, suffering, loss of
life and other evils’ and the government’s decision to become the
‘church warden’ of Hindu deities was ‘unchristian’. After a long
struggle, the missionaries finally succeeded; in 1856 the government
severed all connections and formalised its decision to hand over the
superintendence and management of the temple to the raja of Khurda.
Though
the sole aim of the missionaries was to evangelise Orissa, it became a
Herculean task to find a convert among the followers of Jagannath. The
first mission was set up in Orissa in 1822, but it took six years to
convert a native. In 1827 Erun Senapati, a Telugu-Oriya weaver, was
baptised; but in a real sense the first Oriya convert was Gangadhar
Sarangi, a brahman of Tangi in Cuttack district. Gangadhar, who was
baptised in 1828, was a disciple of Sadhusundar Das, a Hindu ascetic
who preached monotheism and anti-idolatry. Though Christianity
impressed Das and he encouraged his followers to read Christian
theology, he himself never wanted to be converted. However, some of his
followers embraced Christianity, boosting the morale of the early
missionaries. But Orissa never experienced a large-scale conversion to
Christianity. Initially, each convert had to be won individually. And
contrary to conventional wisdom, most of the early converts were from
the upper castes and their motive was not material gain. They converted
only after a thorough reading of the Christian scriptures and comparing
these with the Hindu shastras. Subsequently, the missionaries won some
converts through their schools and orphanages. In later stages, they
moved into the tribal areas where they had a better success rate. And
here, unlike the early stages of the evangelisation movement, the
decision to convert was based on many motivations, including the
material.
The missionaries confronted many obstacles in their
attempt to evangelise Orissa: rigid social customs, illiteracy,
unfavourable climate, lack of communication, and more importantly, the
overarching spiritual influence of Jagannath. Undaunted by these heavy
odds the missionaries continued their work. They vehemently attacked
idolatry, female infanticide and human sacrifice; educated the
illiterate; opened asylums, orphanages and hospitals for the poor, the
homeless, and the sick; and served the destitute during famines. Their
evangelical mission ushered in a new Oriya literary movement. The
Reverend A Sutton compiled an Oriya-English grammar, an Oriya
Dictionary, translated Gita Govinda, Amarkosa, Batrish Singhasan, and
edited the Oriya Gazette; W C Lacey composed Oriya Grammar and J
Phillip authored Geography of Orissa. A number of newspapers and
journals sprang up. The missionaries opened schools and hospitals in
the inaccessible tribal areas. Though evangelisation was their primary
objective, their philanthropic role also needs to be underlined.
Thus,
Hindu-Muslim and Hindu-Christian encounters in Orissa, despite
occasional hostility, were never inimical. There was no large-scale
conversion among Oriyas either to Islam or Christianity, and Muslims
and Christians hardly ever appeared threatening to Hindus in terms of
their numbers or their ‘otherness’, since both these communities,
despite their different religions, were part of the same Oriya cultural
traditions. Against this backdrop, it is interesting to observe how
Hindutva made its entry into present-day Orissa.
II. Hindutva and the Jagannath Culture
The
RSS considers the Jagannath-Oriya-Hindu-Indian interconnection an ideal
framework for the spread of Hindutva. It understands very well the
positive implications of the pre-colonial/colonial/Oriya Hindu upper
caste-middle class construction of the Jagannath cult and its symbolic
importance in the religious, social, cultural and political life of the
Oriyas. Hence, it depicts the culture of Orissa as Jagannath Sanskruti
because this overarching culture surpasses and dominates all other
sects and little traditions. True, many counter traditions and
critiques like the Mahima Dharma did emerge, but ultimately these were
absorbed into the broad fold of the Jagannath cult.45 Hence, the RSS
realises the futility of projecting Hindutva as an alternative; it
claims, rather wisely, its ideological affinity with the Jagannath
culture.46
The RSS characterises Jagannath as a ‘vanavasi’
(tribal) deity and Orissa as a vanavasi province; the Oriyas, it
believes, possess a vanavasi character, still retaining the primitive
innocence, simplicity and honesty of a tribal society. Hence, the RSS
claims to find the popular character (‘lok charitra’) of Orissa
receptive to its ideology. What perhaps guides this line of thinking is
that it is easier to influence the bulk of the poor, illiterate, deeply
religious, unassuming and non-assertive people of this economically
backward province. However, the Oriya character, if such a thing does
exist, should not be seen as monolithic and unchanging. Within Orissa,
it not only differs from one region to another, but also varies from
one class to the other. Moreover, people’s character is not fixed and
immutable; it very much changes over time. While Kingsford47 praised
the courage and fearlessness shown in 1730 by the peasant militia of
Balasore district, A. Stirling48 characterised the Oriyas in the plains
as the most mild, quiet, inoffensive, and easily managed people in the
Company’s provinces. If one could speak of a monolithic Oriya character
at all, then it must be conceded that it has been shaped by a host of
factors: topography and the furies of nature, emergence and decline of
different religious sects and cults, long absence of an encompassing
dynastic rule, fragmentation and annexation of its territory, strong
influence of neo-Vaisnavism under Chaitanya, tyrannies of Muslims,
Marathas and native Hindu rajas, British colonial intervention,
struggle for an Oriya identity, Indian freedom movement, and the
post-colonial experience. Hence, the formation of the Oriya character
is the result of a complex historical process, and is not based on a
fondly imagined unspoiled, pure and innocent vanavasi identity, as the
RSS romantically portrays.
The RSS further argues that bhakti
(devotion) constitutes the core of the Jagannath culture and that the
Oriyas are devout Hindus. As devotion to the nation is the theme of
Hindutva, the RSS regards this ideology to be in consonance with Oriya
traditions. However, the RSS differentiates between these two forms of
bhakti. As a senior pracharak observes, though the Oriyas are a deeply
spiritual people, they emphasise the personal aspect of religion, and
hence they concentrate on puja (worship), bhajan (devotional song),
upavas (fasting), etc, for the self-realisation of god and for personal
salvation. But they do not display a similar devotion to the nation.
The major challenge for the RSS is to channelise the devotional and
spiritual energy of the Oriyas towards the Hindu Rashtra. Surely,
bhakti constitutes the core of the Jagannath tradition, demanding the
devotee’s personal identification with and submergence into the Lord.
The Bhaktisutra of Narada defines this as parama prema, highest love
for the Lord, possessing immortality in itself, 'gaining which a person
becomes perfect, immortal and satisfied, attaining which a person does
not desire anything, does not hate, does not exult, does not exert
himself or herself (in furtherance of self-interest).'49 Though the RSS
demands bhakti or a complete surrender to the Hindu nation, there
exists a fundamental difference; while the Jagannath tradition is broad
and flexible and allows the maximum philosophical and ontological
autonomy to the devotee to attain selfless spiritual bliss, the
political Hinduism of the RSS variety is precariously narrow and rigid,
training its followers to tread the mundane path into the murky world
of desire, conflict, hatred and ‘otherness’.
Samanwaya
(harmony) and catholicism remain at the core of the Jagannath culture
as well as of Hindutva, claims the RSS, since both are integrationist
in nature. The RSS argues that there is no polarisation of castes
despite the prevalence of the caste system in Orissa. While the
interplay of caste politics is intense in other provinces, the RSS does
not find it a threat here; hence, it is easier to propagate Hindutva.
True, every Hindu sect and creed can seek shelter under the broad
canopy of Jagannath, but there is also an extended list of exclusion.50
The temple not only prohibited entry to Muslims, Christians and Jews,
but it also shut its door to low caste Hindus, flesh-eating aboriginals
and even ‘fallen’ women ó practices which reveal a close resemblance
between brahmanical Hinduism and Hindutva. But this exclusion was
partly based on the notion of purity and pollution in religious
practices, and is certainly not akin to Hindutva’s cerebral engagement
with the ‘other’. Philosophically, Jagannath (Lord of the Universe)
symbolises everything that is broad and universal. He lives in
Badadeula (grand temple), strolls along the Badadanda (grand road),
bathes in the Mahodadhi (grand ocean) and eats Mahaprasad (grand food).
Even in practice, Mahaprasad, the rice that has once been placed before
the god can never cease to be pure nor lose its reflected sanctity.
'The lowest may demand it from, or give it to, the highest. Its
sanctity overleaps the barriers, not only of caste, but of race and
hostile faiths; and a Puri priest will stand the test of receiving the
food from a Christian’s hand.'51 Jagannath is patitpavan, the god of
the down-trodden; he comes out on the street during the rath yatra,
breaking all barriers of caste, creed and even religion. In contrast to
Jagannath’s message of universal brotherhood and love, Hindutva
propagates a limited vision of the saffron brotherhood and its
catholicism does not even embrace all the Hindu sects and traditions,
but is confined only to the believers in the Hindu Rashtra. More
importantly, these two traditions vary significantly in their
approaches towards the non-Hindus. Hence, it would be useful to examine
the evolution of communal politics in Orissa.
III. Emergence of Communal Politics: Hindu Mahasabha and the Muslim League
Soon
after its creation in 1936, Orissa also experienced the competitive
communal politics that characterised this period. The capital Cuttack
obviously became the epicentre. The Orissa branch of the Muslim League
was opened in Cuttack in February 1938. Fazlul Haque, chief minister of
Bengal, addressed the Muslim Students Conference in Cuttack on May 20
and 21, 1938, calling for the creation of a compact organisation. The
Jamait-ul-ulema organised a meeting in Salepur, Cuttack district in
December. Nor were the Hindus silent. On January 24, 1940, the Hindu
Mahasabha opened a branch in Puri, the famous Hindu pilgrimage centre,
with the raja of Madhupur as its president. Just a month later the
Orissa branch of the Muslim League became affiliated to the All-India
Muslim League.52
Pro-war and anti-war politics caught up in
Orissa as well. The All Utkal Hindu Mahasabha strongly criticised the
Congress policy of non-violence, advocated assistance to the government
in its war efforts and also called for the enrolment of Hindu youth in
the army. In a meeting held in Cuttack on September 15, 1941, Manmohan
Choudhury, a Hindu Mahasabha leader from Bengal, called upon the Hindus
to strengthen organisations like the Ram Sena and the Mahabir Dal for
the advancement of military power and underlined the necessity of
establishing a national militia in every district to protect the
legitimate interests of Hindus. The Muslim League’s response was
identical. Nawab Ismail Khan, Choudhury Kaliquat Zamam and Muhammad Isa
Khan of the All India Muslim Defence Committee arrived in Cuttack on
May 15, 1942 and contacted the prominent Muslims of the town. They
opened a branch of the Defence Committee and appealed to the Muslim
youth to enrol. The visitors explained the Pakistan scheme to the
Muslims and exhorted them to open branches of the Muslim League to
safeguard the interests of their community. The Hindu Mahasabha was no
less active; Sadasiva Nanda Sharma, its organising secretary, toured
different parts of Orissa in September-October 1943, urging Hindus to
organise and assert their religious, political and cultural rights. The
All India Hindu Dharma Seva Sangha was formed in Puri53 in May 1944;
the Sangha called upon Hindu youth to enlist in the army in large
numbers 'so that they might be equal to the Muslims in military
achievements' and also 'advocated measures for doing away with
untouchability and reconversion of ex-Hindus.'54
Some Muslims
observed Direct Action Day on August 16, 1946 in Cuttack and
characterised the Congress as a Hindu organisation. The meeting called
upon the Orissa Muslim title holders to renounce their titles in
protest against the Cabinet Mission Plan. The Muslim League organised
meetings and processions in Sambalpur and Balasore seeking Muslim
support for Jinnah. In its meetings held on September 16 and 17, 1946,
its working committee passed a resolution urging the Bihar government
to take measures for the relief and rehabilitation of riot-affected
Muslims and began raising money for the victims. The atmosphere was
further surcharged after the riots in East Bengal and Calcutta in
October 1946. A section of Hindus in Orissa proposed to form a Hindu
militia and set up defence committees in each village. Printed leaflets
in Oriya entitled ‘jatir daka’ (community’s call) were circulated in
Cuttack urging Hindus 'to boycott Muslims in all respects.' As a
result, panic spread among the Muslims. Protesting against the Noakhali
riots, the Hindus did not celebrate Diwali with their customary gusto
in most parts of Orissa and instead observed hartals in many places.
Some Hindus urged the Muslims of Orissa to appeal to the Muslims of
Bengal 'to refrain from indulging in communal riots as it might lead to
disastrous consequences in Orissa', where the Muslims were in a
minority.55 In 1947 the Muslim League in Orissa decided to collect a
sum of Rs 20,000 to set up its own press and also to raise a ‘Pakistan
Fund’. It also set up a committee to acquaint the members of the
constituent assembly from Orissa with their grievances.
It is
clear that much of the Hindu-Muslim tension arose primarily in response
to communal situations outside Orissa. Unlike people in other
provinces, the Oriyas were neither violent nor vicious and hardly
harboured communal hatred. On certain occasions, tensions between the
two communities did emerge as a result of internal socio-economic
dynamics. For example, during the 1943 famine, the conflict between the
Muslims wage earners and the Hindu landlords in Bhadrak resulted in
police firing on a ‘Muslim’ gathering which obstructed a ‘Hindu’
procession.56 Moreover, all Muslims did not support Muslim communal
politics. For instance, in June 1939 the Muslim Youngmen’s Organisation
was formed in Balasore 'for lending service to the Communists when
needed'; the ‘Nationalist’ Muslims, in a meeting held in Cuttack on
April 4, 1940, 'condemned the communal policy of Jinnah' and extended
support to the Congress.57 Similarly, a large majority of Hindus
shunned the Hindu communal politics of the Hindu Mahasabha. As a
result, despite the occasional eruption of communal tensions, 'to the
immortal credit of Orissa,Önot a single drop of human blood was shed on
her sacred soil'.58
RSS in Orissa
Meanwhile, the RSS
was looking to make its entry into this recently created province. But
due to its expanding activities in west, north-west and north India,
there were not enough pracharaks to begin full-fledged work in Orissa.
Hence, at this stage it could not treat Orissa as a separate province
(prant) from its organisational standpoint. However, during the 1940s,
the pracharaks working in Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Bihar
initiated Sangh work in the border areas of Orissa which abutted their
state boundaries.59 Anantalal Shrivastav introduced a shakha in
Sambalpur in western Orissa and Purnananda Swami in Ganjam in southern
Orissa. Mukund Rao Moonje, a nephew of B S Moonje, came from Bilaspur,
Madhya Pradesh to start a unit (shakha) in Cuttack. These initial
organising activities received a severe jolt after Mahatma Gandhi’s
assassination and the subsequent banning of the RSS. The large-scale
arrests of the RSS cadres all over the country created fear and panic
among its sympathisers in Orissa. Even some active supporters severed
their links with this organisation.
Soon after the lifting of the
ban in 1949, the RSS declared Orissa as a separate province (prant) and
Golwalkar deputed Baburao Paldhikar60 as the first prant pracharak.
When Paldhikar reached Orissa there was practically no RSS presence in
the state. He arrived in Cuttack, the political and commercial centre
of Orissa, and made this city his base of operations. He hired a
one-room tenement in the Jaunliapati marwari basa (rest house). Mukund
Rao Moonje introduced him to some non-Oriya businessmen who were RSS
sympathisers. Paldhikar started a morning shakha at the Marwari Club
grounds of Manik Ghosh Bazar.
Disseminating Hindutva
Initial Strategy of Penetration
Paldhikar
adopted the usual style of RSS operations in a new area ó establishing
and extending its sphere of influence through the local notables
(‘bishista byaktis’).61 In accordance with his strategy, he first met
Nilakantha Das, an important political figure who had been a member of
the central legislative assembly for more than two decades (1924-45).
Nilakantha was initially sceptical, but Paldhikar was able to convince
him of the RSS mission. His second meeting was with Godavaris Misra, a
noted educationist and a former minister of Orissa. Paldhikar found
that he had a soft corner for the RSS. Godavaris provided him with a
list of prominent Oriya educationists and lawyers.62 Accordingly,
Paldhikar contacted Jadumani Mangaraj, Laxminarayan Sahu and other
notables and found them quite favourably inclined towards the rss. None
of these notables blamed the rss for Gandhi’s assassination; and to
Paldhikar’s surprise Mangaraj even went to the extent of describing
Nathuram Godse as God Se (from god).63
Why were these notables
sympathetically inclined towards the RSS? Their socio-political
background probably influenced their decision. Nilakantha and Godavaris
belonged to the powerful brahman community of Sakhigopal of Puri;
Mangaraj64 belonged to the militant khandayat (kshatriya) caste; and
Sahu hailed from a resourceful native trading community. All of them
were also Congress dissidents. Nilakantha and Godavaris were Swarajists
and also had links with the Hindu Mahasabha. Nilakantha was expelled
from the Congress in 1941 for his propaganda against Gandhi’s policy of
non-violence and for advocating participation in the British war
effort.65 In 1941, he was instrumental in forming a coalition
government with the Muslim League in Orissa on the advice of Subhas
Chandra Bose.66 Along with Godavaris he actively campaigned for raising
subscriptions to the war fund. In 1943, Nilakantha was elected
president of the Utkal Provincial Hindu Mahasabha67 and made an
unsuccessful attempt to bring the entire Swaraj Party in Orissa into
the fold of the Hindu Mahasabha. In 1944, while the Congress supported
Rajgopalachari’s proposal for Hindu-Muslim unity, the notable
exceptions in Orissa included Nilakantha Das and Laxminarayan Sahu.68
Nilakantha
provided some tangible help to the infant organisation; he permitted
the RSS to hold shakhas on his Navbharat Press grounds at Banka Bazar,
Cuttack. Reciprocating the gesture, the RSS invited Nilakantha to
preside over its prestigious Vijaya Dasmi Utsav held in Nagpur in
October 1950. This was significant for the RSS for two reasons: first,
the participation of a well known Congressman in its major annual
function, soon after the lifting of the ban, would erase the taint of
its alleged involvement in Gandhi’s assassination to some extent; and
second, close association with a leading Oriya notable would help the
RSS to gain the benefit of his socio-political links in the state,
where it was struggling to establish a foothold. Nilakantha accepted
the invitation, and Golwalkar himself received his guest of honour at
the Nagpur railway station. Nilakantha’s speech was inspiring to the
RSS.69 He said that the term Hindu was not communal; it was only
another name for Arya which means shreshtha or the highest. It stands
for 'all that is good and noble in life and there was no reason why we
should be ashamed of calling ourselves Hindus.' Nilakantha reminded his
audience that the Bhonslas of Nagpur had saved Utkal province from
being overrun by ‘alien raiders’. He predicted great glory for the
organisation: 'The RSS, born in Nagpur, was once again going to be the
redeemer', with this difference, that this time it will be the 'saviour
not only of Utkal province but of the whole India'.70 Here it is
pertinent to briefly examine the place of Maratha rule in the history
of Orissa, a somewhat controversial subject. Colonial historiography
refers to Maratha ‘misrule, oppression and bloodshed’ and describes the
advent of the Berar Marathas as ‘the greatest of all calamities’.71
However, the Madalapanji is silent on this aspect; rather it mentions,
though briefly, the contributions and grants made by the Marathas to
the Jagannath Temple and their help to the raja of Khurda. The
Marathas, as Stietencron observes, 'energetically patronised a revival
of Hindu culture' in Orissa.72 It is interesting to note that the
debate between the Socialists and the RSS in Orissa also occasionally
refers to Maratha rule; while the RSS attacks the bigotry of the
Mughals, the Socialists remind them of the terror perpetrated by the
Maratha bargis which is still fresh in the collective memory of the
Oriyas.73
Another Oriya notable Prana Krishna Parija, a
distinguished scientist and educationist, also presided over the Vijaya
Dasmi function in Nagpur. Both Parija and Golwalkar were the products
of the Benaras Hindu University. Parija introduced the RSS into Oriya
intellectual circles. During Golwalkar’s visit to Orissa, he organised
a meeting at his residence at which prominent Oriya intellectuals
interacted with the RSS chief.74 The third Oriya to preside over this
function was Dinabandhu Sahu, a prominent Congressman.
Shaping the Organisation
Besides
his liaisons with the Oriya notables and Marwari businessmen, Paldhikar
toured extensively and set up new shakhas. While keeping command at the
Cuttack headquarters, he strategically positioned an army of efficient
non-Oriya, mainly Maharashtrian, pracharaks: Sadanand Pantawane in
Balasore, Vasant Rao Bapat in Puri, Vasant Rao Agarkar in Cuttack,
Pravakar Shastri in Berhampur, Shridhar Acharya in Bolangir, Narayan
Mandal in Rourkela, Chintamani Kavthekar in Sambalpur and Baburao
Deshpande in Sundargarh. These dedicated pracharaks interacted with the
local notables, established shakhas, and recruited young boys with
their innovative methods.75
The RSS in Orissa regularly
invited its central leaders and organised public functions to propagate
its ideology and encourage the new recruits. Golwalkar’s annual visits
were quite inspiring and motivated the recruits and activists. These
visits also offered useful opportunities to interact with the notables
at the state and district levels. Deendayal Upadhyay once addressed a
public meeting at the Cuttack Town Hall which was attended by many
notables. Deendayal’s frail physique and young age did not initially
impress Nilakantha, who presided over the meeting. But his speech
turned out to be so impressive that Nilakantha endorsed the rss
ideology in his presidential address. Godavaris, extending the vote of
thanks, suggested that Deendayal’s speech be printed and dispatched to
prominent Oriya notables.76
In 1956, commemorating the 51st
birthday of Golwalkar, the RSS launched a 51-day ‘jan samparak’
programme and also raised a fund (‘sampark nidhi’) from the public. The
Orissa unit organised an impressive function in Baripada town in which
many ‘prant pracharaks’ and ‘prant sanghchalaks’ participated. L N Sahu
wrote a small pamphlet on Golwalkar. At the all-India level, the RSS
contacted more than 40 lakh people and collected a sum of Rs 21 lakhs.
The Orissa unit reached out to 23,000 adults and contributed Rs
9,417.77 The notables and the Marwari businessmen facilitated the
collection.
During the 1966 ‘go raksha andolan’ the RSS undertook
a campaign and reportedly collected more than 20 million signatures
from around the country. It was easy to mobilise popular support on the
issue as the cow is venerated all over the state. Incidentally, the
Orissa government had already passed the Orissa Prevention of Cow
Slaughter Act in 1960. Nilakantha and other notables took the
initiative in the signature drive; reportedly the governor of Orissa
was the first signatory to the memorandum.
Side by side, the
RSS laid the foundation of the Sangh parivar. In 1964, Deendayal
Upadhyay started the Orissa unit of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS) in
Jharsuguda and appointed Shridhar Acharya, a veteran pracharak, as the
state organising secretary. Also in the same year the RSS launched
Rashtradeepa, an Oriya weekly, to propagate its ideology. In 1967, the
Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) inaugurated its Orissa unit
by organising the first state conference in Puri. Saroj Mitra, a
pracharak, was appointed the state organising secretary. In 1966, about
a hundred delegates from Orissa went to Prayag to attend the first
Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) conference, which incidentally was
inaugurated by Bishwanath Das, governor of Uttar Pradesh, an Oriya who
was also a prominent congressman and Vedic scholar. The VHP opened its
Orissa chapter soon after, with Kanakalata Devi, the Rajmata of the
former feudatory state of Narasinghpur, as the president and Bhupendra
Kumar Basu, then prant karyavah of the RSS, as the vice president. A
RSS pracharak Raghunath Sethi was appointed as the secretary and a well
known businessman Narasingh Das Bhavsingha became the treasurer. The
executive committee comprised many distinguished personalities. The VHP
organised the first state conference in Chandikhol in 1968 and
constituted a reception committee under the chairmanship of an
influential baba, Bhairabananda.78 Pabitra Mohan Pradhan, deputy chief
minister in the Swatantra-Jana Congress government, inaugurated the
conference and promised to act against the Christian missionaries who
were engaged in conversion activities.79 Next year, Puri was the venue
of the second VHP conference, emulating the Chandikhol pattern ó
providing a platform for sadhus, feudal chiefs, politicians,
businessmen, bureaucrats, notables, and above all RSS activists.
The
Sangh parivar entered into the tribal areas through the VHP. With the
aim of ‘Hinduising’ the tribals and to counter the activities of
Christian missionaries, it deputed a Hindu missionary Laxmanananda
Saraswati80 and a Harijan RSS pracharak Raghunath Sethi to the tribal
district of Phulbani.81 The state government passed the Orissa Freedom
of Religion Act 1967 and introduced penal provisions for those who
converted or attempted to convert by use of force, fraud or
allurement/inducement. While the Orissa Prevention of Cow Slaughter Act
1960 encouraged the RSS to step up its anti-Muslim campaign, the 1967
Act provided a convenient handle to intensify anti-Christian
propaganda.
Communal Riots and the Possibilities
Rourkela and Cuttack
Although
communal tensions had existed between Hindus and Muslims in the 1940s,
Orissa did not witness any communal riots. For the first time, in March
1964, it experienced a communal riot in the industrial town of
Rourkela. Special trains carrying East Pakistani Hindu refugees from
Howrah, West Bengal to Madhya Pradesh had been stopping at Rourkela to
take on food supplies. During this stopover the refugees narrated their
tragic experiences to the public as the government encouraged people to
offer foodstuff to the passengers. The RSS took the lead in supplying
food to the refugees, an act for which it gained much publicity. On
March 11, some RSS men 'used a loudspeaker on the railway platform in
order to appeal and arouse Hindu sentiments and openly condemned
Pakistan and its policies'.82 This practice went on for almost a week,
brewing tension. The spread of rumours further complicated matters. The
trouble began on March 18 and the climax was reached on March 20. Hindu
crowds comprising Punjabis, Biharis, Bengalis, Oriyas and Adivasis
attacked the Muslims. In this communal riot 72 people were reportedly
killed. The RSS blamed the Muslims for what they regarded as an
unprovoked attack on the refugees and accused them of causing the
riots. But it was the RSS which had provoked the Hindus against the
Muslims. All the RSS pracharaks, including Paldhikar and Deshpande,
were arrested.83
Cuttack, the commercial capital of Orissa,
experienced the second major riot. Curiously, this riot was the result
of a Supreme Court judgment. The Hindus of Alkund and Nuagaon villages
in Jajpur sub-division filed a writ demanding the right to play music
before a mosque and pleaded that they should not be bound by the
agreement between the two communities reached in 1931 which denied the
Hindus this right. The Supreme Court, in a verdict delivered on October
29, 1968, allowed the Hindus to take out both religious and
non-religious processions to the accompaniment of music on the highways
passing through these villages subject to the magistrate’s directions
and traffic regulations.84 This judgment came during the Kartikeswar
Puja. The Hindus deliberately delayed the immersion procession to enjoy
this newly bestowed right. The Muslims of Cuttack opposed this
judgment, arguing that there was no tradition of playing music before
the mosques in the city. However, after negotiations, they allowed the
immersion procession to pass in front of their masjids.
After
a week, on November 25, 1968, some football players of Christ College
were allegedly stoned and beaten up by Muslims near the Sutahat Masjid,
Cuttack. Then the riots spread throughout the city. Unlike the Rourkela
riots, there was hardly any killing in Cuttack.85 A different trend was
noticed here; the rioters were mainly engaged in looting and setting
fire to the shops and houses of Muslims.86 Though the leaders of the
opposition parties mainly blamed anti-social elements for the riots,
the CPI leader Lokanath Choudhury denounced the role of the RSS and
criticised a provocative article published in its mouthpiece,
Rashtradeepa.87 However, R N Singhdeo, chief minister of the
Swatantra-Jana Congress government, exonerated the RSS and the BJS of
these charges.88
These riots undoubtedly rejuvenated the RSS,
at least in some important urban centres like Cuttack. Shakhas
multiplied and attracted increasing numbers of urban Hindu boys. The
urban middle and lower middle classes began to appreciate the
discipline of the swayamsevaks, their behaviour and mannerisms and
above all their organised strength aimed at defending Hindus in case of
a Muslim attack. Soon after these riots the RSS tightened up its
organisation in Orissa. The Orissa RSS was singled out for national
recognition when Golwalkar visited its training camp (‘sangha shiksha
varga’) in Rourkela in 1967 and conferred on it the status of an
independent camp. Henceforth, the swayamsevaks no longer needed to go
out of the state for training. Native Oriya pracharaks had already
started replacing their non-Oriya counterparts.90 Realising its growing
strength, the central RSS leadership recognised Orissa as a developed
province in 1970 and appointed Bhupendra Kumar Basu89 as the first
sanghchalak and Harihar Nanda, a dedicated Oriya pracharak, as the
‘prant karyavah’.
Expansion
The rejuvenated RSS
started expanding in the 1970s, particularly after Balasaheb Deoras
became the ‘sarsanghchalak’. The Orissa unit activated its affiliates:
the BJS, the ABVP and the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) in accordance
with the Deoras strategy.91 The BJS had a negligible support base in
Orissa; and the BMS had hardly any presence. However, the ABVP was
emerging as a promising affiliate. The Sangh parivar in Orissa joined
the movement led by Jayaprakash Narayan in accordance with the central
directive; the BJS and the ABVP became very active. Soon after the
Emergency was declared many leaders and members of the Sangh parivar
were arrested; Basu was jailed but Paldhikar went underground. The RSS
cadres undertook satyagraha at various places and courted arrest. The
RSS leaders who were underground ran an efficient propaganda network.
They translated, printed and distributed anti-Indira Gandhi pamphlets
among the students, intellectuals, officials and other educated
sections, building up a strong anti-Congress public opinion. They
organised secret late night meetings in temples and other places where
the police would not normally enter and maintained close contacts with
other anti-Emergency political forces, including the Socialists, the
Gandhians, and even the communists.
The anti-Emergency
agitation established the political credentials of the Sangh parivar in
Orissa. The leaders of the ABVP, after their release from jail,
captured the students’ unions in important colleges and universities.
Four members of the BJS were elected to the Orissa legislative assembly
as Janata Party candidates in 1977; Biswabhushan Harichandan, president
of the erstwhile Orissa BJS, became a cabinet minister. The RSS brought
in some talented young non-Oriya pracharaks to expedite its expansion
drive in this favourable political climate. Shyamji Gupta was appointed
the ‘sah-prant pracharak’ in 1978; he demonstrated his ability by
organising a jamboree in Cuttack in 1981, in which 10,000 swayamsevaks
participated. Suryakant Kelkar, another dynamic young pracharak, was
appointed organising secretary of the ABVP.
Thus, the RSS entered
Orissa relatively late and pursued a policy of ‘adhocism’ till the late
1960s. Due to the Marwari connection and an over dependence on
non-Oriya pracharaks, the RSS acquired a negative image as a ‘Marwari
organisation’, thereby receiving a lukewarm response in Orissa.
Moreover, its elite-centric approach, although it paid dividends at the
time of its entry, failed to carry its message beyond the upper
caste-middle class confines. As a result, it had a very slow growth,
being restricted mainly to some urban pockets. But the communal riots
in Rourkela and Cuttack, in a sense, rejuvenated the RSS and spurred
its expansion. The RSS consolidated its organisational machinery,
recruited Oriya pracharaks, and strengthened its links with civil
society through its affiliates the BJS, the VHP, the BMS, and the ABVP.
But the political fallout of the Emergency provided the ideal
opportunity for its rapid expansion.
Patronage and Resistance
In
its infancy, the RSS received crucial political and social patronage
from the leading Oriya notables belonging to the conservative
socio-political segment and economic patronage from the Marwari
businessmen. In the phase of rejuvenation, particularly during the
Cuttack riots, it managed to get a clean chit from the chief minister R
N Singhdeo; in fact, many ministers in his Swatantra-Jana Congress
government were sympathetic to the RSS. In the phase of expansion, the
RSS received patronage from Hare Krushna Mahtab, a veteran Congressman
who had earlier been Orissa’s chief minister, a central minister, and
the governor of Maharashtra. Mahtab, himself a fitness freak, always
appreciated the body-building culture and the discipline of the RSS. He
drew even closer to the RSS during the Emergency; some swayamsevaks who
were lodged along with Mahtab in Bhanjanagar jail endeared themselves
to him by keeping him constant company and extending personal services
to him. After his release, Mahtab praised the role of the RSS in his
popular column ‘Gaan Majlis’ and provided them with generous coverage
in his newspaper Prajatantra. Mahtab presided over important RSS
functions, attended the camps, and helped its cadres in many ways. He
even wore its uniform and wielded the lathi (ganavesh) and joined the
RSS rally in Cuttack in 1981. Mahtab remained a strong RSS patron till
his death. Well-known Sarvodaya leaders like Malati Choudhury and Rama
Devi also became RSS sympathisers mainly due to its role during the
Emergency. Association with these leaders enhanced its respectability.
Despite
this patronage the RSS faced resistance from a section of Congressmen
and Socialists. As Paldhikar recollects, many freedom fighters and
Congressmen shut their doors, accusing his organisation of Gandhi’s
murder. The stiff opposition mainly came from the Socialists, a key
figure being Bishwanath Pandit.92 In the early 1950s, the RSS leader
Baba Saheb Apte was scheduled to address a public meeting at
Ramachandra Bhawan, Cuttack. Pandit and other Socialists occupied the
hall before the commencement of the meeting, shouted ‘Gandhiji’s
murderers, go back’, and prevented Apte’s entry. Though Paldhikar along
with a few swayamsevaks entered the venue forcibly, the meeting had to
be cancelled. During the Rourkela riots, Biren Mitra’s Congress
government ordered the arrests of the RSS pracharaks. Nandini Satpathy,
the Congress chief minister during the Emergency, also had many leaders
and cadres of the RSS arrested. But patronage to Hindutva certainly far
outweighed the resistance to it.
Conclusion
As this
paper shows, the history of the early years of Hindutva in the ‘Hindu
province’ of Orissa, despite being similar in many respects to its
history in other provinces, is quite novel in its own way. Orissa, a
region of many diversities and contradictions, still retains some
unique features of Hinduism, manifested in particular in the Jagannath
cult. What we saw were the ways in which structures of pre-colonial
legitimacy were reinvented by colonialism, acquiesced to by the
nationalist and the post-colonial leadership/discourses, and
appropriated by an identity-seeking Hindu upper caste-middle class.
Together these offered a congenial climate for the development of
Hindutva. In fact, an influential section of the Congress which courted
the Hindu Mahasabha provided succour to the RSS as well, facilitating
its entry into Orissa. However, Hindutva experienced a rapid expansion
only after the communal riots, a completely new experience for the
people of Orissa. Organisational ingenuity, crucial political
patronage, and unconventional political experiments during the
Emergency also contributed significantly towards establishing Hindutva
in Orissa.
Notes
1 See Bernard S Cohn (1966):
‘Regions Subjective and Objective: Their Relation to the Study of
Modern Indian History and Society’ in Robert I Crane (ed), Regions and
Regionalism in South Asian Studies: An Exploratory Study, Monographs
and Occasional Papers Series, Monograph Number Five, Duke University,
Durham.
2 Christophe Jaffrelot (1996): The Hindu Nationalist
Movement and Indian Politics, 1925 to the 1990s: Strategies of
Identity-Building, Implantation and Mobilisation [with special
reference to Central India], Viking, Delhi.
3 Thomas Blom
Hansen (1999): The Saffron Wave: Democracy and Hindu Nationalism in
Modern India, Oxford University Press, New Delhi.
4 K Jayaprasad (1991): RSS and Hindu Nationalism: Inroads in a Leftist Stronghold, Deep and Deep, New Delhi.
5
Arild Engelsmen Rudd (1996): ‘Contradictions and Ambivalence in the
Hindu Nationalist Discourse in West Bengal’ in Stein Tonnesson and Hans
Antlov (eds), Asian Forms of the Nation, Curzon Press, Surrey, pp
150-80.
6 In fact, the retreating colonial bureaucracy
located it along this framework. For example, governor Trivedi
described Orissa as a ‘Hindu province’ in his letter to Lord Wavell.
Cited in Biswamoy Pati (1993): Resisting Domination: Peasants, Tribals
and the National Movement in Orissa 1920-50, Manohar, New Delhi, fn no
105, p 241.
7 As outlined, politically it was ‘a by-product
of the then new province of Sind’, with poor Orissa being 'thrown out
by the English rulers as a Hindu province to pander and palliate the
communal propensities of the Indian people in the process of dividing
them to rule'. Pandit Nilakantha Das (1959): ‘Oriya Language and
Culture’, Orissa Historical Research Journal, Vol 8, No 1, April, p 39.
8 See Kenneth W Jones (1981): ‘Religious Identity and the
Indian Census’ in N G Barrier (ed), The Census in British India: New
Perspectives, Manohar, New Delhi, pp 73-101.
9 Thus, the
population in terms of religion in 1991 was as follows: Hindus 94.67
per cent, Christians 2.10 per cent, Muslims 1.83 per cent, Sikhs 0.05
per cent, Buddhists 0.03 per cent, Jains 0.02 per cent, and others 1.30
per cent. Among the states, only Himachal Pradesh has a higher
percentage of Hindus, i e, 95.90 per cent.
10 Mano Mohan Ganguly
(1912): Orissa and Her Remains: Ancient and Medieval (District Puri),
Eastern Book House, Patna, 1987, p 6.
11 W W Hunter (1956):
‘Jagannath’ in W W Hunter, Andrew Sterling, John Beams, N K Sahu, A
History of Orissa, Vol I, Sushil Gupta (India), Calcutta, p 5.
12 Kapila Samhita, Chapter 1, Verses 8-9. Quoted in W W Hunter, ‘Jagannath’, ibid, p 3.
13 See M N Srinivas (1952): Religion and Society among the Coorgs of South India, Asia, Bombay.
14
See L S S O’Malley (1935): Popular Hinduism: The Religion of the
Masses, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge and C J Fuller (1992):
The Camphor Flame: Popular Hinduism and Society in India, Penguin, New
Delhi.
15 McKim Marriot (ed) (1955): Village India: Studies in the Little Community, University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
16
Though Oriya society is quite superstitious even today, an exaggerated
interpretation is given in F B Laurie (1850): Orissa, The Garden of
Superstition and Idolatry: Including an Account of British Connexion
with the Temple of Jagannath, R N Bhattacharya, Calcutta, 2000, 2nd rpt.
17 According to the 1991 Census, the scheduled castes constituted 16.2 per cent of the population of Orissa.
18
According to the 1991 Census, the scheduled tribes constituted 22.2 per
cent of the population of Orissa, with the major tribes being the
khonds, kols, santals, savaras, and gonds.
19 For a description of
the religious beliefs and practices of the Hill Saoras of Ganjam and
Koraput, see Verrier Elwin (1955): The Religion of an Indian Tribe,
Oxford University Press, Bombay.
20 See Anncharlott Eschmann et al
(eds) (1986): The Cult of Jagannath and the Regional Tradition of
Orissa, Manohar, New Delhi; Hermann Kulke and Burkhard Schnepel (eds)
(2001): Jagannath Revisited: Studying Society, Religion and the State
in Orissa, Manohar, New Delhi; Ishita Banerjee Dube (2001): Divine
Affairs: Religion, Pilgrimage, and the State in Colonial and
Postcolonial India, Shimla, IIAS.
21 Prasanna K Nayak (2001):
‘Jagannath and the Adivasis: Reconsidering the Cult and Its Traditions’
in Hermann Kulke and Burkhard Schnepel (eds), Jagannath Revisited, op
cit, pp 25-48.
22 Biswajit Mohanty (2000): ‘Politics of
Rehabilitation: A Case Study of the Indravati Project’, Unpublished PhD
thesis, University of Delhi, p 78.
23 Hermann Kulke, ‘Early Royal
Patronage of the Jagannath Cult’ in A Eschmann et al (eds), The Cult of
Jagannath, op cit, pp 139-55.
24 Prior to the colonial period the
Oriyas did not have a strong consciousness of their identity. See B N
Mohapatra (1996): ‘Ways of 'Belonging': The Kanchi Kaveri Legend and
the Construction of Oriya Identity’, Studies in History, Vol 12, No 2,
ns, pp 203-21.
25 For a discussion on these three forms of
nationalism, see G N Dash, ‘Jagannath and Oriya Nationalism’ in A
Eschmann et al (eds), The Cult of Jagannath, op cit, pp 359-74.
26 Gopabandhu Das (1923): Bandira Atmakatha, Cuttack, quoted in G N Dash, ibid.
27
See Bishnu Narayan Mohapatra (1990): ‘The Politics of Oriya Nationalism
1903-1936’, Unpublished DPhil. thesis, Oxford University, p 187.
28
For instance, Mahatma Gandhi’s decision to start his padyatra from Puri
was perhaps influenced by the Jagannath factor. The raja of
Parlakhemundi, after taking his oath as the first prime minister of
Orissa in 1937 (in the interim ministry), visited the Jagannath Temple
although his ancestors had stopped visiting Puri due to dynastic
rivalry. Biju Patnaik, one of the architects of modern Orissa, sought
directions from Jagannath before his bid to return to political power
in the state in 1990. J B Patnaik, who served as chief minister for a
long time, has composed many poems dedicated to Jagannath.
29 For details, see Bhabani Charan Ray (1989): Mughal-Orissa: Itihas O Sanskruti (in Oriya), Vidyapuri, Cuttack.
30 For a sympathetic account of Maratha rule in Orissa, see B C Ray (1993): New Lights on Maratha Orissa, L Ray, Bhubaneswar.
31 L S S O’Malley (1984), Bengal District Gazetteers, Puri, rpt, Usha, New Delhi, p 73.
32 Ibid.
33 Brajasundar Das, comp, Orissa in Hamilton’s Hindostan (1820), p 7.
34
See Richard Eaton (1993): The Rise of Islam and the Bengal Frontier:
1204-1760, University of California Press, Berkeley, Chapter 5: ‘Mass
Conversion to Islam: Theories and Protagonists’, pp 113-36.
35 In
the popular perception of Oriyas, Kalapahar is a destroyer of idols.
See G N Dash, ‘Kalapahar, the Iconoclast: The Making and Message of a
Legendary Tradition: Reconversions in Medieval Orissa and Bengal’ in
Hermann Kulke and Burkhard Schnepel (eds), Jagannath Revisited, op cit,
pp 227-51.
36 Richard Eaton (2000): Essays on Islam and Indian History, Oxford University Press, New Delhi, p 107.
37 Ibid, p 106.
38 Ibid, p 116.
39
The Satya Pir tradition also exists in Bengal. See Tony K Stewart
(1995): ‘Satya Pir: Muslim Holy Man and Hindu God’ in David S Lopez, Jr
(ed), Religions of India in Practice, Princeton University Press,
Princeton, pp 578-97.
40 However, like Bengal, Muslims in Orissa
have almost ceased to worship Satya Pir, perhaps conceiving this as an
impediment to their identity. Conversely, the Hindus continue with this
practice as Satya Pir could be ‘comfortably accommodated’ into the
hegemonic theological structure of the vaisnava avatara theory, ibid, p
580.
41 For a glossary of such words, see Bansidhar Mohanty and K
B Tripathi (1967), ‘Perso-Arabic Influence on Oriya’, Orissa Historical
Research Journal, Vol XV, Nos 1 and 2, pp 65-112.
42 See Biswamoy
Pati (2001): ‘The High-Low Dialectic in Fakirmohana’s Chaman
Athaguntha: Popular Culture, Literature and Society in Late 19th
Century Orissa’ in his Situating Social History: Orissa (1800-1997),
Orient Longman, New Delhi, pp 26-49.
43 RSS leaders observe that
due to this reason the growth of the RSS in Orissa is slow, but it is
steady and consistent without any sudden fluctuation in membership.
44
See Dasarathi Swaro (1990): The Christian Missionaries in Orissa: Their
Impact on Nineteenth Century Society, Punthi Pustak, Calcutta, p 92.
45
A Eschmann, ‘Mahima Dharma: An Autochthonous Hindu Reform Movement’ in
A Eschmann et al (eds), The Cult of Jagannath, op cit. Also see
Subhakanta Behera (1997): ‘Jagannath and Alekh: A Study in
Juxtaposition’, Economic and Political Weekly, Vol XXXII, Nos 33 and
34, August 16-23, pp 2096-97.
46 In its formative years, the RSSs
could not penetrate into Orissa due to its failure to gauge the hold of
the Jagannath cult among the Oriyas. Interview with Bhupendra Kumar
Basu, the first prant sanghchalak of Orissa.
47 D H Kingsford,
Settlement Report of Balasore, quoted in L S S O’Malley (1933): Bihar
and Orissa District Gazetteers, Cuttack, 2nd edition, E R J R Cousins,
Patna, p 58.
48 A Stirling (1822): An Account (Geographical,
Statistical and Historical) of Orissa Proper or Cuttack, Bengal
Secretariat Press, Calcutta, 1904, p 25.
49 Quoted in Klaus K Klostermaier (1989): A Survey of Hinduism, State University of New York, Albany, p 211.
50 See L S S O’Malley, Bengal District Gazetteers, Puri, op cit, p 98.
51
W W Hunter (1877): A Statistical Account of Bengal: District of Puri
and the Orissa Tributary States, Vol XIX, Trubner and Co, London, rpt,
D K Publishing Company, Delhi, 1976, pp 42-43.
52 H K Mahtab,
chief ed (1957): History of the Freedom Movement in Orissa, Vol IV
(1930-47), State Committee for Compilation of History of the Freedom
Movement in Orissa, Cuttack, pp 55-56.
53 Sushil Chandra De, comp
(1966): Diary of Political Events in Orissa: April 1, 1936-August 15,
1964, The Committee for Compilation of ‘Who’s Who’ of the Freedom
Movement, Bhubaneswar, p 51.
54 Ibid, p 55.
55 H K Mahtab, chief ed, History of the Freedom Movement in Orissa, Vol IV (1930-47), op cit, pp 132-33.
56 Biswamoy Pati, Resisting Domination, op cit, p 221.
57 Sushil Chandra De, comp, Diary of Political Events in Orissa, op cit, pp 27, 30.
58 H K Mahtab (1960): The History of Orissa, Vol II, Prajatantra Prachara Samiti, Cuttack, p 456.
59 Interview with Baburao Deshpande, the senior Maharashtrian pracharak in Orissa.
60
Paldhikar was born in 1921 in Arvi, Maharashtra. Hedgewar’s visit to
his hometown inspired him to join the RSS. After graduating from
Nagpur’s Maurice College in 1940, he became a pracharak and left for
Punjab where he spent a decade. In 1949, Golwalkar sent him to Orissa
as the first prant pracharak. Paldhikar is known as the founder
(pratisthata) of the Orissa RSS.
61 Jaffrelot discusses how the
RSS made its entry into central India through the local notables. See
Christophe Jaffrelot, The Hindu Nationalist Movement and Indian
Politics, op cit.
62 The name of Harihar Singh Mardaraj, an
erstwhile feudatory chief, figured in this list. Paldhikar persuaded
him to become nagar sanghchalak of Cuttack city. Interview with Baburao
Paldhikar.
63 Interview with Baburao Paldhikar.
64 Mangaraj presided over the Khandayat Conference held in April 1947 at Bhubaneswar.
65 H K Mahtab, chief ed, History of the Freedom Movement in Orissa, Vol IV (1930-47), op cit, p 71.
66 See Nilkantha Das Papers, NMML, New Delhi.
67
Hindu Mahasabha Papers, File No 17 (1943), NMML, New Delhi. In 1943,
the total primary membership in the province was 2,507. Ibid. To enlist
new members and to do publicity work, the All India Hindu Mahasabha
paid monthly remuneration to a retired publicity officer of the Orissa
government. See ‘Orissa Provincial Hindu Sabha Papers’, Hindu Mahasabha
Papers, File No 58, NMML, New Delhi.
68 H K Mahtab, chief ed, History of the Freedom Movement in Orissa, Vol IV (1930-47), op cit, p 107.
69 For the text of this speech, see Hitavada, October 20, 1950.
70 Ibid, p 7.
71
Revd A Sutton (1850): Orissa and its Evangelisation, Derby, England, p
48; also see A Stirling, An Account (Geographical, Statistical and
Historical) of Orissa Proper or Cuttack, op cit, p viii.
72
Heinrich von Stietencron, ‘A Congregation of Gods: The Dolamelana
Festival in Orissa’, in Herman Kulke and Burkhard Schnepel (eds),
Jagannath Revisited, op cit, p 398.
73 The British constructed a
negative image of Bargi to perpetuate their policy of ‘divide and
rule’. See B C Ray (1995): New Light on Maratha Orissa, L Ray,
Bhubaneswar, p xv.
74 Interview with Baburao Paldhikar.
75 For
more on RSS pracharaks, see Pralay Kanungo, ‘Pracharaks of Hindu
Rashtra’, Contemporary India, Vol 1, No 2, April-June 2002, pp 175-97.
76 Interview with Baburao Paldhikar.
77 Shri Guruji: Man and His Mission [On the Occasion of His 51st Birthday] (1956): Bharat Prakashan, Delhi, pp 91-92.
78
In Orissa babas and gurus enjoy considerable clout among politicians,
bureaucrats and businessmen. Bhairabananda’s selection was very useful
for purposes of fund raising and in cultivating the right contacts for
the future. Moreover, he was sympathetic towards the RSS. For more on
the links between gurus and Hindu nationalism, see Lise McKean, Divine
Enterprise: Gurus and the Hindu Nationalist Movement, University of
Chicago Press, Chicago, 1996.
79 See Arun Kumar Panda (1990):
‘Odissare Vishwa Hindu Parishadara Agragatira Itikatha’, Hindu Vishwa
(Oriya Section), Vol 25, No 12, August, pp 27-30.
80 Laxmanananda,
an inmate of an ashram in the Himalayan foothills, participated in the
goraksha andolan. Then he joined the VHP and came to Orissa. After
consulting the RSS leaders he set up his base in Chakapada, Phulbani.
For more on his mission, see Pralay Kanungo (2002): RSS’s Tryst with
Politics: From Hedgewar to Sudarshan, Manohar, New Delhi, Chapter V.
81
Phulbani has been bifurcated into two districts: Kondhmal and Boudh.
Kondhmal (Phulbani) has the following population ratio: scheduled
tribes, 54.23 per cent; scheduled castes, 18.20 per cent; and general
category, 27.57 per cent. See Panchayati Raj Department Publication
(1994): Government of Orissa, Bhubaneswar.
82 See B B Chatterjee,
P N Singh, G R S Rao (1967): Riots in Rourkela: A Psychological Study,
Popular Book Services, New Delhi, p 30.
83 The government of
Orissa served a legal notice to Paldhikar. Despite his reply he was
jailed for four months. Later he was released on Nilakantha’s
intervention. Baburao Deshpande was imprisoned for 11 months. After his
release he was externed from Orissa for a year.
84 Quoted in Samaj, December 5, 1968, p 2.
85
Some analysts blame the non-Oriya communities in the industrial city
for the Rourkela killings. They argue that Cuttack did not witness such
killings because of their absence, thereby suggesting that the Oriyas
are a docile people.
86 During the violence 59 houses and 106 shops were looted and set on fire. Samaj, December 12, 1968.
87 Samaj, December 13, 1968.
88 Ibid.
89
Basu was born in 1913 in a Bengali zamindar family of Cuttack district.
Vivekananda’s ideal inspired him in his childhood. After completing his
study of the law, he started his practice. The ‘exemplary discipline’
of the swayamsevaks impressed Basu. His association with the RSS began
when Paldhikar approached him to become the secretary of the Orissa
unit of the Vivekananda Rock Memorial Committee. Basu successfully
managed the fund-collection drive; the government of Orissa donated a
sum of 1 lakh rupees. But Golwalkar’s stay at his house proved to be
decisive; Basu was deeply impressed by his personality, intelligence
and punctuality. At Golwalkar’s suggestion he attended an OTC at
Vardhman. First, he was appointed nagar sanghchalak of Cuttack, then
prant karyavah in 1964, and finally prant sanghchalak in 1970, a post
which he relinquished in 1999 due to ill health. Basu was not a nominal
RSS head; along with Paldhikar he masterminded the RSS strategy in
Orissa.
90 Jagdish Patnaik was the first Oriya pracharak.
91
For details on the Deoras strategy, see Pralay Kanungo, RSS’s Tryst
with Politics, op cit, Chapter VI: ‘Quest for Political Power:
Balasaheb Deoras’, pp 178-223.
92 Pandit, whose grandfather had
migrated from Kashmir, was a freedom fighter and a committed socialist.
He remained a bachelor and led a spartan life, dedicating himself to
the cause of the scavengers and sweepers. Pandit, a devout Hindu,
rejected the RSS’s Ram but had complete faith in Gandhi’s Ram, whom he
described as the poor man’s god. He opposed the RSS because he held
them responsible for Gandhi’s assassination. Interview with Bishwanath
Pandit.
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