What happened when RSS was banned 3 times in the past

After the ban on PFI, some opposition leaders have raised the demand for a ban on the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) as well. The RSS has been banned thrice in the past.

Contrary to the popular perception, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the Congress have had a chequered history with patches of cosy relations and proximity that have brought dividends to both sides.

In this context, the muted demand from a section of Congress seeking a ban on the RSS in the wake of sanctions against the radical Popular Front of India (PFI) lacks the courage of conviction.

As reported by a section of the media, the RSS, formed in 1925 by a disillusioned Congressman Dr Keshav Baliram Hedgewar and claiming to be a 'cultural' organisation, has faced prohibitions thrice in 1948, 1975 and 1992.

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The 1948 ban following the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi was perhaps the most difficult challenge. A government communique issued on February 4, 1948, by the Union Home Ministry headed by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel had said it was banning the RSS “to root out the forces of hate and violence that are at work in our country and imperil the freedom of the nation and darken her fair name”. The communique had further stated: “Undesirable and even dangerous activities have been carried on by members of the Sangh. It has been found that in several parts of the country individual members of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh have indulged in acts of violence involving arson, robbery, dacoity, and murder and have collected illicit arms and ammunition.”

In a letter written to Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee, Patel observed, “There is no doubt in my mind the extreme section of the Hindu Mahasabha was involved in this conspiracy. The activities of the RSS constituted a clear threat to the existence of the Government and the State.”

There was considerable unease all over. Almost 18 months later, Patel himself lifted the ban on the RSS, extending an olive branch of sorts. The informal condition was that the RSS would stay away from politics. Many academicians and political analysts think that a via media was formed when the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, considered to be an earlier avatar of the present-day Bharatiya Janata Party, was formed. Sangh ideologue and political commentator S Gurumurthy, however, contests the thrust given to RSS staying away from politics as a condition for lifting the ban. He cites a statement made by Morarji Desai at the Bombay Legislative Assembly on September 14, 1949, admitting that the ban on RSS was lifted unconditionally and that the RSS gave no undertaking.