NEW DELHI: RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has said that a person cannot claim to be a Hindu while believing that there should be no Muslims in Bharat.Speaking at the ‘One World One Humanity’ event in New York on Saturday, Bhagwat said Hinduism requires belief in the dignity of every human being and acceptance of different paths to the same goal.“If any Hindu thinks that there should be no Muslim in Bharat, he will not remain Hindu. If you want to call yourself Hindu, you must believe that all paths are leading to the same goal and that every human has dignity. There is no difference between human beings,” he said.Bhagwat made the remarks while recalling a conversation with a group of Muslims who had asked him about Hindutva. He also emphasised the need for societal education and said India’s traditional thought was centred on the “unity of humanity”.The RSS chief said positive change had to begin within society rather than through politics, which he described as increasingly driven by self-interest.“This is the traditional thought of Bharat- unity of humanity. All our leaders, at any point in time, have emphasized that too. After independence, we got the constitution, which emphasizes this, but that is not happening. Because these things do not happen through politics. I’m sorry to say, but the fact is, politics has now become a game of self-interest. And you have rightly said, where there is me and I, there is no solution. We and ours are the solution. So our experience in Bharat is that we have to start with the society,” he said.Bhagwat called for sustained efforts to educate society and build an atmosphere of unity and selfless service.“If we do not keep educating the society, then the deflections creep in, and somehow it happened in the course of history. I cannot point the moment. After that, our society, our country, was a target of foreign invasions, and so many things were lost,” he added.Bhagwat also cited the RSS response to the 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision in Haryana, in which two aircraft collided, killing passengers, most of whom were Muslims.“Two planes collided over Haryana, which is part of Bharat, over the place named Dadri. Both were from Arab countries. Most of the passengers were Muslims. After that collision, our Swayamsevaks reached there first, and they served. Served in treating the injured. All others were dead. Recovering their bodies, arrange for the funeral rites when their relatives come, helping them in identifying. We never thought at that time that these are Muslims,” he said.He said the RSS was able to undertake such work because it was not involved in electoral politics and did not seek publicity or anything in return.“The prominent working organisation was RSS. We could do this because we are not in politics. And we don’t go on making these things famous because we don’t want anything from this. No return. I do not only tell others not to come to gain something. We do it in Sangha. We only give. We don’t want anything… There are many perceptions created by wrong narratives. But when you come and see us from inside, all those will be disbelieving in the day,” he added.Bhagwat also argued that public opinion could influence political leaders in a democracy and called for local initiatives to promote unity.“I do not only tell others not to come to gain something. In Sangha, we only give. We don’t want anything. That is why in publicity matters, we are way behind… Politics today, especially in a democracy, depends on the public view. If there is public opinion, then no politician will dare to go against it. Therefore, I think after taking a common resolve today, we have to act in these societies, and we have to act first locally,” he said.“Whatever we decide to do today, we should start in our own country and create pockets of such selfless service, such an atmosphere of unity, and then this dialogue should continue. Through this dialogue, we should connect them, and then we should grow,” he added.Making a veiled reference to India’s age-old ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ philosophy, Bhagwat said religions may differ in their practices, but humanity remains one.“I am not a religious scholar, nor a religious authority like you, but I am working in a society which traditionally says that religions might be different, but humanity is one. Truth is one, and humanity is a product of that truth. So humanity is one. That truth is one truth, but it is described in many ways according to the describer. Because as human beings, we are prisoners of the software that has been created in our heads,” he said.
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“There are many religions, and in today’s world, religions are largely defined by rituals. And to fit in a religious discipline, and to treat that path to divinity, this discipline of rituals is also necessary,” he added.Bhagwat arrived in New York earlier this week as part of a three-nation global outreach tour covering the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. The tour has been organised at the invitation of overseas local organisations as part of the RSS’ centenary year celebrations.
