Right Word | Vijay Diwas: National Security Is Not Politics — What Today’s Opposition Can Learn From RSS |
As we celebrate ‘Vijay Diwas’, marking the victory of the Indian armed forces over Pakistan on 16 December 1971 that led to the birth of Bangladesh, it would be pertinent to go back into history and see how, keeping ideological differences aside, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) supported the Congress governments in their war efforts. Political parties in opposition and all those who have indulged in petty politics over national security–related operations ranging from the surgical strike to Operation Sindoor can learn from the RSS about how to give top priority to the national interest.
1971 War and the Birth of Bangladesh
In 1971, when refugees from East Pakistan were pouring into India in large numbers to escape the brutal persecution of the Pakistan military, one of the highest decision-making bodies of the RSS—the Akhil Bharatiya Karyakari Mandal (ABKM)—passed a resolution which urged “the Government of Bharat to take strong and immediate measures in keeping with its basic stand and the assurances given to the people from time to time, and in consonance with national sentiments and self-respect." The resolution said, “The people will wholeheartedly support any such action. It is true that when the Government resorts to such action, the people also will have to make supreme sacrifices. The Karyakari Mandal exhorts the people to rise to the occasion when such a call comes."
After the formation of Bangladesh,........