Hindutva reshaping India on Brahminical lines, warns veteran activist Ram Puniyani

By A Representative 

In a wide-ranging interview, veteran secular activist and writer Ram Puniyani has offered a stark assessment of India's political trajectory, warning that the country's pluralistic fabric is being systematically eroded by a well-orchestrated Hindutva project that seeks to reshape Indian society along Brahminical lines. Speaking to journalist A K Shiburaj, Puniyani, who has spent decades working for communal harmony, described the nature of communalism in India as having worsened dramatically over the past two decades, particularly since the BJP came to power about twelve years ago. 

"The intensity of hate against Muslims and Christians has deepened, atrocities against Dalits, Adivasis and women have increased sharply, and autocracy has strengthened its grip," he said, adding that fear among religious minorities has been rising sharply while the diversity of India is shrinking.

Puniyani argued that Hindutva has moved beyond being merely an electoral ideology to acquiring a wider social and cultural hegemony, with the RSS functioning as a suprapolitical organisation intent on influencing every aspect of society. He pointed to the widespread popularisation of "Jai Shri Ram" as a war cry and the imposition of the full version of Vande Mataram as examples of how Hindu mythology and Brahminical values are being insinuated into the mainstream. The objective, he asserted, is to transform Indian society in the image of the Manusmriti, creating an India that rejects the path of democracy and the Constitution, and instead models itself on the authoritarian traditions of Hitler and Mussolini.

Crucially, Puniyani underscored the deep economic and material interests driving the expansion of Hindutva, arguing that communal politics and economic power are interconnected parts of the same political project. He contended that the policies of the ruling dispensation are aimed at enriching the elite upper-caste sections of society while systematically weakening welfare measures such as MGNREGA, the Right to Education, the Right to Food, and the Right to Health. 

Citing an OXFAM report, he noted that a large section of the poorer sections of society owns very little property, while the top one per cent own over fifty per cent of the country's wealth. He contrasted the escape of fugitive businessmen like Mehul Choksi, Nirav Modi and Vijay Mallya with the writing off of huge loans for industrialists like Ambani and Subhash Chandra, observing that the elite sections are "making merry while the average and poorer sections are writhing in pain and deprivation".

Addressing the intricate relationship between Hindutva and caste, Puniyani explained that while the ideology seeks to construct a broad Hindu identity that cuts across caste divisions, the caste hierarchy remains deeply embedded in Indian society. He described how the RSS co-opts lower castes through its affiliated organisations—the Samajik Samrasta Manch for Dalits, the Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram for Adivasis, the Rashtra Sevika Samiti for women, and the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh for workers—which work to keep these sections subordinated while perpetuating varna-caste hierarchies. He cited Gujarat as the "first laboratory of Hindu Rashtra," where the ghettoisation of Muslims has intensified and every caste now has its own colonies where others are not permitted to stay.

On the normalisation of Hindutva ideology, Puniyani observed that bias against Muslims and the narrative of Hindu nationalism have been spread relentlessly through RSS shakhas and issues like the Ram Temple, the Holy Cow, Love Jihad, and the portrayal of Muslims as terrorists, polygamous, and a demographic threat to the Hindu majority. He stressed that this process can only be challenged through a multi-layered approach involving community work, interactive sessions, and the screening of appropriate films, backed by a correct portrayal of Indian nationalism and the roles of leaders like Gandhi, Ambedkar, Bhagat Singh and Subhas Bose.

Reflecting on the state of secular and progressive forces, Puniyani acknowledged that they have failed to combat the might of the communal forces, which are very united. He called for an urgent need for secular forces to put their heads together and build popular pressure through movements like Eddelu Karnataka and the Bharat Jodo Abhiyan. Despite the grim picture, Puniyani said that he had lost hope a few years ago but that the Bharat Jodo Yatra and the recent Gen Z movement had restored some hope. Speaking to a new generation of young Indians who have grown up amid Hindutva's increasing cultural dominance, he emphasised the need to highlight the values of Bhagat Singh, Gandhi, Ambedkar, Maulana Azad and Subhas Bose as desirable ideals.