Author:
Publication: Organiser
Date: September 3, 2000
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak
Sangh has asked Shri Prakash Ambedkar to produce a copy of the 1949 Agreement
under which the RSS was alleged to have undertaken to hoist the National
Flag on its headquarters in Nagpur. Shri M.G. Vaidya, member
of the National Executive of the RSS, has marshalled facts to nail the
canards being spread to malign the Sangh on the question of the National
Flag.
In his statement issued
on August 22, Shri Vaidya pointed out that on August 16, 2000, Shri Prakash
Ambedkar, MP, while speaking in the Lok Sabha had stated that according
to the Home Ministry's resolution dated 26th November, 1949, "There was
an agreement between the RSS and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel which clearly
states that RSS will hoist the National Flag on 26th January 1950 at its
Nagpur headquarters."
Earlier on the same day,
he (Shri Ambedkar) had said that, "in the year 1949, there was agreement
between Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and the RSS in which it was clearly stated
that on 26th January 1950, when all the political prisoners were to be
released, the RSS will hoist our National Flag at their Nagpur Headquarters."
Shri Vaidya said : "We
will like to ask Shri Ambedkar to produce a copy of that agreement.
He should not abuse MP's privileges to malign the RSS.
Shri Ambedkar ought to
know that the ban on RSS was imposed on 4th February 1948, and lifted on
13th July, 1949. If at all any understanding or agreement had taken
place between the RSS and the Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel on
behalf of the Government, it must have taken place during that period.
Did the so-called agreement of 26th November take place after the ban was
lifted? Let Mr Ambedkar explain.
The following few facts
have to be noted in this connection :
1) On 1st June, 1949,
Shri M.S. Golwalkar, the then Sarsanghchalak of the RSS, wrote his
last letter to the Home Minister, saying, "Since my direct and truthful
words seem to be unpalatable to the Government, I think it best to desist
from writing any further for the present." This was written from Seoni
Jail which is located in Madhya Pradesh at present.
2) To this letter, Shri
H.V.R. Iyengar, Secretary to the Government of India, in his reply
on 11th June 1949, inter alia said, "In these circumstances the Government
do not consider that any useful purpose would be served by continuing the
correspondence."
3) Actually the matter
ended there. But then Pundit Moulichandra Sharma came as an intermediary.
At whose instance, he came, is for the Government to tell. But it
was made clear to Shri Sharma that Shri Golwalkar or any one else on behalf
of the RSS will not write anything to the Government. So, as a compromise,
it was agreed that Shri Golwalkar will write to Shri Moulichandra Sharma
as an individual interested in knowing the RSS position regarding certain
points. And on 10th July, 1949, Shri Guruji handed over to Shri Sharma,
a statement about the RSS position regarding the points that he had raised
during discussion with him in the jail.
4) The relevant portion
of the statement is reproduced below :- "Loyalty to the Constitution of
India And the State Flag" This question should not arise in an independent
country. Every national of India claims loyalty to his country and
that is his proud birth-right. Every member of the Sangh pledges
to dedicate his all to the service of the motherland. Like every
other citizen of India every Swayamsevak of the Sangh is loyal to the country,
its Constitution and all the emblems of India's national independence and
glory. The flag is such an emblem and it is, as has been stated before,
the proud duty of every Swayamsevak as of every national of India to stand
by this flag and keep up its honour. As you know, this has already
been stated in the draft constitution in Article 5. Although it was
not necessary to do so, it was advisably mentioned to emphasize the importance
that the Sangh attaches to this point. I am sure nobody will mix
up the question of our institutional flag, the Bhagwa Dhwaja, with the
question of the State Flag, adopted by the Constituent Assembly.
As you know, even the Congress has its own flag separate from the State
Flag. In fact according to law, no party, institution or individual
can use this State Flag except under rules laid down by the Government.
This being the spirit, I can have no objection to this point made more
explicit in the Constitution itself.
5) There was nothing
new in this statement. Actually this was the same statement, almost
verbatim, that was issued to the press in Delhi on 2nd November, 1948,
only difference being that the 1948 statement was in Hindi and the letter
to Shri Sharma in July, 1949, was in English. (See the Hindi statement
and its English rendering alongside) This 1948 statement was sent to the
Government also and had been referred to in the correspondence that Shri
Golwalkar had with the Government from the Seoni jail. As for the
other points raised by Shri Ambedkar, we have to state that :
(1) Last year the RSS
has not lathi-charged the demonstrators. The Government's law enforcing
agency did the thing, obviously to restrict the illegal action on the part
of the demonstrators.
(2) I may also state
that it is not that the RSS has never hoisted the Tricolour. Hundreds
of the shakhas of RSS in Delhi on every Republic Day arrange the function
of the Bharatmata poojan where the Tricolour is hoisted. It happens
in so many other places also.
(3) As for the Bhagwa
flag, the RSS from its inception has accepted it as its 'Guru'. Every
year Swayamsevaks present their offerings before the 'Guru'. That
Guru is spiritual. It has nothing to do with politics."
