NURTURING NATIONAL ETHOS

THE VHP HAS COME A LONG WAY IN THE HISTORY OF INDEPENDENT BHARAT AND IN THE LAST 58 YEARS IT HAS CARVED NICHE FOR ITSELF IN THE BHARATIYA SOCIETY AND HINDUS ABROAD THROUGH ITS MULTI-FACETED ACTIVITIES OF SOCIAL WELFARE AND NATION BUILDING

- CHAMPAT RAI

Way back in 1960s, Dr Shambhu Nath Kapil Dev, the then MP from Trinidad and Tobbago was on tour to Bharat. He was much at pains to observe the erosion of Hindu ethos and life values among the Hindus living in Trinidad since centuries. He came with a hope that the then Government of Bharat would help him tide over this social problem. But he was disappointed. Someone advised the visiting MP to seek audience with the then Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) Sarsanghchalak MS Golwalkar (Guruji). Accordingly, he met Guruji at Belgaum in Karnataka and shared his concerns with him.

It was at this meeting that the seeds for a worldwide organisation of Hindus were planted.

Prior to this, the late Shivram Shankar alias Dadasaheb Apte, who was a Pracharak of RSS, used to tour the entire country and abroad as a journalist. He would observe the plight of Hindus in various countries. Coupled with this the challenge of conversion of Hindus to alien religions was faced at home. Justice Niyogi Committee Report had amply highlighted their nefarious anti-national designs way back in 1957, Shri Apte wrote three articles in 1961 in Kesari projecting the problems of the Hindus abroad and thus attracting the attention of the Hindus of Bharat to them. He also suggested forming a worldwide organisation of the Hindus. It was a happy coincidence that SwamI Chinmayananda of Chinmay Mission also felt the similar need for the global Hindu organisation and he expressed his desire in his article in Tapovan Prasad in November 1963.