A Hindu rejecting Muslims ceases to be Hindu: RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat in US

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, speaking at the “One World, One Humanity” faith leaders’ conference in New York, declared that Hindutva rejects exclusion, stating that any Hindu who believes Muslims should not live in India ceases to be a Hindu.

New York:  Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat on Saturday said that a Hindu who believes Muslims should have no place in India ceases to be a Hindu, asserting that Hindutva recognises the dignity of every human being and accepts different paths to the same truth.

Speaking at the “One World, One Humanity” faith leaders’ conference in New York, Bhagwat recalled a question posed to him by Muslims during a lecture series in Delhi in 2018.

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“In 2018, during my lecture series in Delhi, several Muslim brothers present there asked me, ‘You are a Hindu organisation. You speak of Hindu Rashtra. What about us Muslims? Will you drive us out?’ I told them, ‘No, that is not Hindutva. If any Hindu thinks that there should be no Muslim in Bharat, he ceases to be a Hindu,’” Bhagwat said.

He said Hindu identity required an acceptance of religious diversity and the equal worth of every individual.

“If you want to call yourself Hindu, you must believe that all paths lead to the same goal. Every human being has dignity, and there is no difference between human beings. All these differences decorate nature, and we have to acknowledge them. But the reality that is always present is that we are one,” he said.

Bhagwat told the gathering of faith leaders that he was neither a religious scholar nor a religious authority. His experience, he said, came from working within Indian society and its long tradition of recognising the unity of humanity.

“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,” he said.

“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,” Bhagwat added.

He said India’s tradition of coexistence had endured despite invasions and the loss of several elements of its civilisational heritage.

“Somehow, it happened in the course of history. I cannot point to the moment. After that, our society and our country became targets of foreign invasions, and so many things were lost. But that tradition still exists, which teaches common people the same thing: one world, one humanity,” he said.

“But, as you said, there is baggage that people unnecessarily carry. In our Bharat, people of all denominations live together because, traditionally, Bharat has given shelter to everybody,” he added.

Bhagwat said religious leaders must continue educating society because deviations could emerge when the message of human unity was not reinforced. He described the task as difficult but necessary in the present global climate.

“The work is eternal and should continue for some time. It should always continue because this has to be done from time to time by religious leaders. They have to impart this wisdom to humanity. But given the present condition of humanity, it will be a laborious, tedious and time-consuming job,” he said.

He also called for social habits capable of resisting materialism, the pursuit of influence and feelings of superiority. “All these things cause disturbances. So, we have to build societies that can withstand these attractions and views,” he said.

The RSS was founded in Nagpur in 1925 by Keshav Baliram Hedgewar. It describes itself as a volunteer-based cultural organisation and has grown into one of India’s largest social organisations, with a nationwide network of local branches.

Bhagwat has served as the RSS Sarsanghchalak, or chief, since 2009. His remarks in New York came during the organisation’s centenary period and formed part of his broader message on social harmony, religious coexistence and the concept of the world as one family.