Knowra Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is an Indian Hindu nationalist volunteer organization founded in 1925 by K. B. Hedgewar. It organizes local shakhas and forms the ideological and organizational center of a wider network known as the Sangh Parivar.
Shakha : A local RSS gathering where members exercise, receive instruction, and participate in organizational activities. The recurring neighborhood meeting is the RSS’s basic unit of organization and training.
K. B. Hedgewar : An Indian physician and political activist who founded the RSS in 1925. Hedgewar established the organization and shaped its early emphasis on disciplined volunteer work.
M. S. Golwalkar : An RSS leader who served as its second chief, or sarsanghchalak, from 1940 to 1973. Golwalkar led the RSS through a period of expansion and articulated influential views on national identity.
Emergency in India : A period of authoritarian rule in India from 1975 to 1977, during which civil liberties were suspended. The RSS was banned and many members were imprisoned during the Emergency, then participated in opposition to it.
Indian secularism : An approach to Indian governance that recognizes religious diversity while maintaining state commitments to equal treatment. Its pluralist framework differs from the RSS emphasis on Hindu civilization as central to national identity.
Sangh Parivar : A network of organizations associated with the RSS and its Hindu nationalist outlook. Affiliated groups extend the RSS’s influence into politics, labor, education, and social work.
Nagpur : A city in Maharashtra, India, where the RSS was founded and established its early headquarters. The RSS began in Nagpur, whose local political milieu shaped its first shakhas.
Balasaheb Deoras : An RSS leader who served as its third chief from 1973 to 1994. Deoras encouraged broader social engagement and led the organization during the Emergency and its aftermath.
Babri Masjid demolition : The destruction of a sixteenth-century mosque in Ayodhya by a crowd in 1992. The demolition intensified scrutiny of Hindu nationalist organizations and their mobilization around Ayodhya.
Hindu nationalism : A political movement seeking to define India as a nation grounded in Hindu identity and civilization. The RSS is a major organization within this broader political movement.
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