India can unite only in the spirit of nationalism, says RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat

The Hindutva leader also said he will keep opposing the recommendations of the Sachar Committee as long as Muslims in India refuse to accept that they were all Hindus before being converted.

People who follow diverse practices across India can be united only by the spirit of nationalism, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat said in Kolkata on Tuesday.

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat at an event to celebrate the 150th birth anniversary of Sister Nivedita in Kolkata on Tuesday.(PTI photo)

“What unites the diverse languages, practices and ideas of India? It’s the notion of Bharat Mata,” Bhagwat claimed during an event held to mark the role of Sister Nivedita – a Scots-Irish social worker – in spreading the spirit of nationalism across India. “All diverse languages and practices should coexist, but under the unifying idea of Bharat Mata. All diversities must be subservient to nationalism.”

The RSS chief also said he will keep opposing the recommendations of the Sachar Committee as long as Muslims in India refuse to accept that they were all Hindus before being converted. He also wanted the minority community to accept the idea of Akhand Bharat.

“Bharat, Hindutva and spiritualism are inseparable. Bharat will exist as long as there is dharma and spiritualism,” Bhagwat said, adding that everybody – including Muslims and Christians – can live in peace in India as long as they behave like “children of Bharat Mata”.

The Hindutva leader described Sister Nivedita, an ardent follower of Swami Vivekananda, as the epitome of Indian nationalism. “If she, a foreigner, could feel at one with Bharat, why can’t we? We need to learn how to love the nation from her,” he said.

Bhagwat also referred to litterateur Rabindranath Tagore in his call for unity under the Hindu nationalist banner. “Rabindranath told the British that their hope of dividing Hindus and Muslims through clashes will fail because the two communities will find a way to stay united. And that way will definitely be the Hindu way,” he said.

Bhagwat was in the West Bengal capital for attending an event held by the Sister Nivedita Trust to commemorate her 150th birth anniversary.