Ramjanmabhumi: Hinduizing Politics and Militarizing Hindudom 115along with the Brahmin and non-Brahmin struggle led to a reaction of the
Brahminical orthodoxy, who had to act immediately to restore the slip-
ping hegemony. Savarkar and Bhai Paramanand (1876-1947), who used
to believe in Hindu-Muslim unity against the alien conqueror, emerged as
Hindu militants,^17 and their ideology was put to work.
The status-quoist Brahminical inclination of Hedgewar and his cohorts
was no secret. The temple incident at Kagal near Kolhapur was just one
example. The RSS founder had gone there to present the local RSS branch
with the flag. When the swayamsevaks (volunteers) began to gather at
the temple where the program was going to be held, the priests prohib-
ited the untouchable RSS volunteers from entering the temple. The RSS
mouthpiece, Organiser, completes the story: "When Doctorji came there he
learnt about this. He simply said, 'That all Hindus are one, is the basis of
my work'—and returned without entering the temple."^18 V.D. Savarkar,
the president of the Hindu Mahasabha, spelled out the Hindutva forces'
intentions more articulately:It must be plainly mentioned here that even those who are at present bracketed as untouch-
ables are themselves guilty of this sin [untouchability] just like those who are bracketed
as touchable Hindus.... The sin is common to all of us and therefore, let us all join hands
together and be determined to remove this curse with a supreme effort. In the meanwhile
our Sanatani brothers may rest assured that barring the fundamental rights which
every citizen is entitled to in public life, the Hindu Mahasabha will always refrain
from having any recourse to law to thrust any religious reform on any sect within
the Hindu fold even in the case of untouchability. (italics in original)^19
Savarkar further clarified that the lines of action on removing untouch-
ability "would be made clear from time to time as the work proceeds."^20
Madhav Sadashiv Golwalkar (1906-1973), who assumed leadership of the
RSS in 1940 on Hedgewar's death, reiterated the same Brahmin bias of the
organization: "Living in this holy land we built a great Dharma ... com-
bining highest material prosperity with purest spiritual beatitude. In this
confluence we tried to build great empires, consolidating the people into a
well ordered Society, striving to make every individual happy and free from
want and to offer him opportunities to achieve the highest flights of philosophy
and spiritual peace—each according to his own genius, inclination and persua-
sion and in this endeavour we set up lofty ideals of individual purity and
holiness, of love and service, of sacrifice and selflessness, of devotion and
dedication" (italics mine).^21
The Hindutva commanders and outfits have been consistently dubi-
ous about the caste system and untouchability over a long period of time.
After all, Ram himself beheaded a so-called sudra, Sambuka, for practic-
ing austerities and aspiring for heaven. Talking in the Rajya Sabha, the
upper house of the Indian parliament, in August 1988, the BJP leader A. B.
Vajpayee eloquently argued for the safety of the "Harijans and Tribals"