INTRODUCTION

The resurgence of Hinduism during the last two decades has once again prompted the scholars to attend to the task of understanding and analysing the phenomenon seriously . Attempts are being made by the Indian as well as foreign scholars to study the

Hinduist ideology, organisations as well as the doctrine of

Hindutva, both in its historical and political context .The recent scholarly works like “ Hindu Nationalism and Indian Politics - A study of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh ” by Bruce Graham, “ The

Brotherhood in Saffron ” by Anderson and Damle, “ Khaki Shorts and Saffron Flags ” by Tapan Basu and others, “ Hindu

Nationalists in India ” by Yogendra Malik and V.B. Singh, “ The

Hindu Nationalist Movement in India 1925 - 1992 ” by

Christopher Jaflfrelot, “ Hindutva ” by Jayant Lele (i), speak for the increasing interest of the social scientists in Hinduism.

As a result , the literature on Hinduism and its related aspects abounds. However, the students of political science hardly seem to have any concern for undertaking a systematic, thorough and dispassionate study of the first Hinduist organisation - the

Hindu Mahasabha. It is true that the HMS which emerged basically as a socio > religjous organisation and transformed itself into a

9 political party, could hardly be said to be a political force to be reckoned with in post - Independent India . The Hindu Mahasabha as it exists ( ! ) today, no more attracts the Hindus as a viable platform for articulating their interest. That task has already been taken up by the other Hinduist organisations and parties like the

Rashtriya Swayamseswak Sangh ( RSS ), the Vishwa Hindu

Parishad ( VHP ) the Bajrang Dal , the Bharatiya Janata Party

( BJP ) and the Shiv Sena . But this cannot and should not be the excuse for ignoring the study of the Hindu Mahasabha. The growth and intensity of the Hindu consciousness as being witnessed by the present generation has long been nurtured by the Hindu Mahasabha since its inception. Any serious attempt to understand the idea of

‘ Hindutva ’ would therefore obviously have to start with the Hindu

Mahasabha. The present study is a step forward in this direction.

The task of undertaking the study of the Hindu Mahasabha is not as simple as it appears to be. The dearth of ofiBcial records pertaining to the Hindu Mahasabha and the relevant party documents is appall'mg. The files of the relevant newspaper clippings - either stored in Public Libraries or preserved privately, of course, constitute one of the major sources of information. But they are scattered all over the region. One, therefore, has to rely

heavily on Archieval sources preserved by the State or National

Archives. 10 The published literature on the Hindu Mahasabha is also

sketchy and scanty. The earlier works have been written by the

Party members of the Maharashtra branch of the Hindu Mahasabha

are mostly in Marathi. The earliest work on the topic is “ Hindu

Mahasabhecha Itihaas ” written by Shri R.G.Bhide, Secretary of

the Pune Hindu Mahasabha branch, in 1943. It discusses the origin

and development of the Hindu Mahasabha through^ the Annual

conventions and states the stand of the party on issues like Cow

protection , Hindu - Muslim unity etc. It also discusses the

programme and achievements of the Hindu Mahasabha in the

region . The book studies the impact of the ‘ Divide and Rule ’

policy of the British on the Hindu and Muslim communities. A more

recent work in Marathi is ‘ Maharashtra Hindu Sabhechya Karyacha

Itihaas ’ written in 1975 by Shri S.R.Date, who was also the

President of the Maharashtra Hindu Mahasabha . This is a detailed

account of the activities of the party during the last fifty years.

Starting with the reasons for the origins of the Hindu Mahasabha ,

Shri Date has put forward the ideology of the party and stressed its

relevance in the Post - Independence period also. He has also

discussed in great detail the activities and agitations taken by the

party to promote the cause of the Hindus. Both these works, no

doubt, provide the relevant and significant information about the

Hindu Mahasabha, but as they have been written by the Party

11 members, some bias is bound to creep in . One hardly expects them to be dispassionate, critical and academically profound .

There have been a few works on the Hindu Mahasabha in

Hini^ and English also. A Doctoral thesis by Dr. Anil Kumar Mishra from Gorakhpur University, written in Hindi, studies the origin and devtJopment of the party from 1906 - 1947 and discusses the reasons for its failure (2 ). However, it hardly offers any critical insi^^its. Similarly, Shri Indra Prakash’s book ‘ The Contribution o f the Hindu Mahasabha ’ is basically a glorification of the party ideology and activities, since the author was an active member of the jjarty ( 3 ). It is an attempt to put forward the contribution and importance of the party in a narrative form.

Besides these works, one hardly comes across any scholarly liter ture on the Hindu Mahasabha. There are some good works on

Hinju Nationalism or Hinduist Parties and Organisations wherein a few facets of the Hindu Mahasabha have been discussed. We have already referred to them in the beginning. However, the focus of thesi works is not on the Hindu Mahasabha and therefore, the

discussion pertaining to it remains on the periphery . Considering

the plight of the existing work related to the Hindu Mahasabha, the

need! to undertake a systematic study of the organisation was greatly

felt ^nd hence this study.

12 The Scope and Nature of the Study

The Hindu Mahasabha is sought to be studied within the social, cultural, historical, religious, economic and political milieu of o

Maharashtra and this focus needs to be explained a bit. Though the Hindu Mahasabha had its local origins in the Punjab in 1907, it soon emerged as an All India organisation . It transformed itself into a political party in the late 1930s and for at least two decades, it acted as an important pressure group voicing the interest of the

Hindus. However, the nature of the Hindu Mahasabha or any of the All India organisations for that matter, cannot be understood properly unless its region - specific manifestations are taken into account . Different regions have contributed differently to the _ growth and ideology of the Hindu Mahasabha . The socio - cultural milieu in dlfFerent Indian regions determined the development o f the

Hindu Mahasabha in its own way. The region of Maharashtra with its peculiar political legacy has considerably influenced the growth of the Hindu Mahasabha at the all India level. It provided the leadership as well as the organisational infi^tructure to the Hindu

Mahasabha. The region also determined the political agenda for the —

Hindu Mahasabha at the national level . Besides, the Hinduist leaders in Maharashtra have always remained in the forefront in providing the ideology of “ Hinduism ” for the Hindu Mahasabha. -

13 Thus, the region has played an important role in shaping the growth of the Hindu Mahasabha. It was, therefore, thought necessary to take into account the region - specific factors that conditioned this growth of the Hindu Mahasabha and that is why the scope of the work is primarily confined to Maharashtra.

The present study analyses the conditions which led to the emergence of the Hindu Mahasabha in Maharashtra . It studies the development of the organisation and the programme and ideology of the Party under diflferent leaders. The politics o f the Hindu

Mahasabha was more a reaction to the then existing political scenario in India. The Hindu Mahasabha reacted and responded to

several political and social issues and movements of its time. For example, the Hindu Mahasabha reacted to the politics of the Indian

National Congress as well as to the politics of the Muslim League.

It responded to the Dalit movement launched by Dr.B.R.Ambedkar in its own way. It reacted to the burning issues such as reli^ous conversions, Hindu - Muslim riots, the Partition of India and several

other problem. It joined the debates over the political reforms in

India and participated in electoral politics. The present work mainly takes into account all these activities of the Hindu Mahasabha and tries to present a systematic understanding of the politics of the

Hindu Mahasabha in the region.

14 For the proper understanding of the genesis and development of the Hindu Mahasabha , a historical - analytical approach has been adopted. The work therefore, heavily relies on primary as well as secondary sources. The primary data includes the original Party documents, papers, pamphlets, leaflets, handouts published by the party at different times to express its views on different issues. The secondary sources include English and

Marathi Newspapers, Books, Periodicals, Magazines, the details of which have been provided in the end. In order to get first hand information about the Party viewpoint or clarify certain issues, many party members were interviewed personally. This helped to fill up the lacuna created by the lack of well - kept records of party activities.

The study is divided into Six Chapters. The First chapter, that is, the emergence of the Hindu Mahasabha, deals with the conditions which led to the emergence of the Hindu Mahasabha in

Punjab. Several factors accounted for the birth of the organisation.

The British policy of ‘ , Divide and Rule the passage of controversial Bills such as the Land Alienation Act, the attitude of the Congress towards the Hindus, the partition of the Bengal, the

attitude of the British rulers towards the Muslims in India and the

subsequent formation of the Muslim League in 1906 were some of

the major factors that caused the emergence of the Hindu

15 Mahasabha. The chapter discussess all these Actors and explains the socio - political context in which the Hindu Mahasabha in

Punjab came into existence. It covers the period from 1907 - 1923 which witnessed the growth of the organisation from being a guardian of ffindu interest in Punjab to the setting up of branches of

Hindu Sabha all over the country.

The Second Chapter, that is, the Origins of the Hindu

Mahasabha in Maharashtra is intended to provide the region - specific background of the emergence of the Hindu Mahasabha in

Maharashtra. The establishment of the Hmdu Mahasabha in

Maharashtra was no doubt a result of the directives of the All India

Hindu Mahasabha to set up Hindu Mahasabha ^ shakhas ’ in different parts of the country. But that is not the whole story. The objective socio - economic conditions in the region following the implementation of the policies of the colonials rulers also paved the way for the birth of the organisation. Considering this, the chapter discusses the socio - economic as well as political factors that were responsible for the rise of the Hindu Mahasabha in Maharashtra.

These factors mainly include the polemics between the Christian

Missionaries and the protagonists of Hinduism, the nationalist politics in the region, the politics of anti - caste movement, the responses of the colonial rulers to these movements and the impact

16 of their socio - economic policies on the political development of the region.

The Third chapter, that is, the Pre - Savarkar Period, covers the period from 1923 - 1937, which witnessed the establishment of

Hindu Sabhas in various parts of Maharashtra. The stand of the

Hindu leaders seemed to be vindicated because of the increasing

Hindu < Muslim riots especially those at Kohat, Malabar, Calcutta and Gullbarga, which emphasised the need to have an organisation to protect Hindu interests. During this period the programme and ideology of the Hindu Mahasabha was guided by N.C. Kelkar , Shri

Siddheshwar Shastri Chitrav B.S.Moonje and L.B.Bhopatkar

( 1880 - 1960 ) . They concentrated mainly on social and religious activities like Shuddhi, Sanghatana, removal of untouchability. This period was marked by co-operation between the Hindu Mahasabha and the Congress. In fact, members of the two organisations shared common platforms at the Annual

Conventions. The Hindu Mahasabha carried out its political activities through the Swarajya Party, the Responsivist Party and later the Lokshahi Swarajya Party, which were a part of the

Congress. The establishment of the RSS ( Rashtriya

Swayamsewak Sangh) by Shri K.B.Hedgewar in 1925 at Nagpur is an important event marked by close co-operation between the two

Hindu organisations. Though social and religious issues were

17 predominant in this period, yet the Hindu Mahasabha members participated in the Round Table conference held in London in 1931

- 1932 and expressed opinions on important political issues like the

Communal Award and later, the Government of India Act of 1935.

The Fourth chapter, that is, the Savarkar Era, deals with the most important period in the history of the organisation.. Savarkar joined the Hindu Mahasabha and was chosen as its President consecutively for six years from 1937 - 1942. These years saw the full flowering of the Hindu Mahasabha ideology as expounded by

Veer Savarkar. He clearly defined the term Hindu, Hindutva,

Hinduism and the means to be adopted by the Hindu Mahasabha in achieving the goal of Akhand Hindu Rashtra . He gave the organisation a distinct political character and emphasised the need to Hinduise Politics and Militarise Hindus. This period also witnessed two successful agitations of the Hindu Mahasabha under

Savarkar’s leadership the Bhaganagar Agitation (1938) and the

Bhagalpur Convention (1941)

The Fifth chapter, that is, the Hindu Mahasabha in Post

Independent India, covers the role of the Hindu Mahasabha in the post - Independence era. The most important events during this period were Savarkar’s retirement from active politics due to poor health, the India’s Independence in 1947 and the Partition,

18 Gandhiji’s assassination in 1948 by Nathuram Godse, a

Maharashtrian Brahmin from Hindu Mahasabha , followed by the

anti Brahmin riots in the region and the ban on RSS. All these

factors practically forced the Hindu Mahasabha to suspend all its

political activities. The popularity of the Party declined rapidly .

The Party could not prove its mettle in the electorol politics, as the

results of the subsequent General elections show. Serious debates

started within and outside the Party regarding the viability and

relevance of the Hindu Mahasabha as a Hinduist political party. A

need to form an altogether new party to protect and promote the

interest of the “ Hindu ” majority was increasingly felt to meet the

requirements o f Parliamentary politics in post - Independent India.

The formation o f the Bharatiya Jana Sangh in 1951 signified this

new trend among the Hinduist. The emergence of this new party

had its repercussions on the Hindu Mahasabha . The fate of the

Wndu Mahasabha as a political party, promising alternative set of

policies to the Centrist and Left forces was almost sealed with the

rise of the Jana Sangh. However, the Hindu Mahasabha continued

to exist more as an Hinduist organisation, promoting the ‘ Hindu

cause ’ and strengthening the Hindu consciousness than as a

political party. The chapter analyses the Kndu Mahasabha in the

light of post - Independent political scenario in India.

19 The Concluding chapter makes a critical analysis of the

Hindu Mahasabha . It explains an accounts for the failure of the

Hindu Mahasabha both as a political party and as an effective

Hinduist organisation integrating the Hindus across the castes and regions. The inability of the Hindu Mahasabha leaders to comprehend the complexity of caste society in India was one of the major reasons as to why it failed to project a common trans - regional Hindu identity for the Indians. The complexity of the ethnic character of the Indian society could not be grasped by the

Hindu Mahasabha leaders properly and objectively. As a result, the

Hindu Mahasabha could not contribute meaningfiilly to the process of nation - building in India. The ‘ Hindu card * as used by the

Hindu Mahasabha leaders proved to be more divisive with respect to uniting even the Hindus ! The Brahminical face of the Hindu

Mahasabha as well as the high caste profile of the Party was also one of the reasons why the Hmdu Mahasabha failed to mobilise the

Hindus effectively in the realm of competitive politics. The Hindu

Mahasabha hardly had any economic agenda which could have effectively mobilised the dominant economic classes on the one hand and appealed to the common man on the other. The failure of the Hindu Mahasabha on the economic front is glaring particularly in the context of ‘ politics of growth and development ’ that characterised the first two three decades of post Independent India.

20 On the cultural front also, the Hindu Mahasabha hardly achieved

v \ any success in engaging itself effectively in what is know these days

as ‘ politics of culture ’ . The RSS scored more than the Hindu

Mahasabha on this ground. The concluding chapter takes note of

all these failures of the Hindu Mahasabha and explains why this

happened. The only count on which the ffindu Mahasabha fared

well was the nurturing of ‘ Hindu consciousness ’ by keeping the

‘ Hindu agenda ’ alive. The chapter therefore, conclusively states

that the Hindu Mahasabha is dead but Hinduism thrives.

-x-x-x-x-x-x

21 Notes and References 1] 5-e^

2] Dr.Mishra, Anil Kumar - Hindu Mahasabha Ek Adhyayan, Akhil Bharat ffindu Mahasabha, New Delhi, 1988.

3] Prakash, Indra - Hindu Mahasabha - Its Contribution to India’s Politics, New Delhi, Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha, 1966.

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