[sacw] SACW #2 | 21 August 02

[Harsh Kapoor]

South Asia Citizens Wire #2 | 21 August 2002

__________________________

#1. UK: Indian Charities - Danger of supporting Gujarati violence=20
(John Thornhill)
#2. US: Shabnam Hashmi from Sahmat speaking on the recent carnage in=20
Gujarat (New York)
#3. India: Seeking support for non-formal school & community centre at Kasa=
i
Ki chali, Ahmedabad. (Ajay Raina and Leya Mathew)
#4. India: Erasing Memory On & Off Screen (I.K.Shukla)
#5. Kashmir Imbroglio: A Quest for an Equitable Resolution - Seminar=20
. (New Delhi)
#6. India: Vanniyar Separatism - Nebulous Issues (P Radhakrishnan)
#7.India: RSS conducts Gujarat-type survey of Hindus in Jaipur

__________________________

#1.

Financial Times; August 16, 2002 Friday (London edition, page 4)
NATIONAL NEWS: Danger of supporting Gujarati violence INDIAN CHARITIES

By JOHN THORNHILL
08/16/2002

Prominent British Indians yesterday called on their community to=20
scrutinise their charitable donations to ensure they are not=20
sponsoring extremist organisations blamed for the recent communal=20
violence in Gujarat. Ram Gidoomal, who chaired a conference in London=20
on human rights in India, said the wealthy non-resident Indian=20
(NRI) population-about 20m worldwide-influenced Indian politics=20
through charitable giving. "One of our recommendations is that NRI=20
funds should take responsibility for monitoring and tracking their=20
money flows so that they do not go to mischief-makers," he said.

The Charity Commission confirmed yesterday that it had launched a=20
preliminary investigation into allegations that two India-related=20
charities were linked to terrorist activities. The commission has=20
contacted the trustees of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (UK) and the Hindu=20
Swayamsevak Sangh to provide further details of their operations.=20
Harsh Mander, country director of ActionAid India, said the financial=20
backers of extremist groups should be held responsible for the=20
actions of these bodies. On February 27, a Muslim mob in Godhra set=20
fire to a train carrying Hindu activists, killing 58 people,=20
including women and children. Retaliatory attacks by Hindu groups in=20
Gujarat killed hundreds of Muslims and left about 200,000 homeless.

A Human Rights Watch investigation into the violence concluded that=20
attacks on Muslims were part of a concerted campaign by Hindu=20
nationalist groups. The groups most directly responsible for the=20
violence against Muslims in Gujarat included the Vishwa Hindu=20
Parishad (VHP), the Bajrang Dal, the ruling BJP and the Rashtriya=20
Swayamsevak Sangh (National Volunteer Corps, or RSS). A=20
representative of the London branch of the VHP, who attended the=20
conference, said his organisation had supported the appointment of=20
a Muslim president and believed in the "family unity" of India.=20
"This slandering of the VHP and the BJP is intolerable," he said.=20
No Hindu organisations are included on the Home Office's list of 21=20
proscribed terrorist organisations. Lord Desai, the Labour peer,=20
rebuffed suggestions that the conference organisers were=20
denigrating India by meeting on India's Independence Day. "The whole=20
independence movement was constructed in the crucible of human=20
rights."

_____

#2.

Shabnam Hashmi from Sahmat is speaking on the recent
carnage in Gujarat where she has spent three months.
She is also showing Gauhar Raza's video film on
Gujarat" Evil Stalks the Land"

Tuesday August 20th, 8 PM 'No to War' GLBT Center,
13th St, NYC, between 7th and 8th.

Thursday August 22nd, 12 noon, Unitarian Universalist
Congregation, 48 Shelter Rock Road. Manhasset, Long
Island

6 pm, Stony Brook University, Life Sciences Building,
Stony Brook, Long Island

Sunday August 25th, 12-4 pm, Brecht Forum, 122 West
27th St, New York, between 6th and 7th

6 pm Wilson Center, Farleigh Dickinson Unversity,
Hackensack, NJ

Interview contact: shabhashmi@h...

or call Ram 212 227 2196

______

#3.

Subject: Seeking support for non-formal school & community centre at Kasai
Ki chali, Ahmedabad.
Date: Mon, 19 Aug 2002 12:55:27 +0530

Seeking support for non-formal school & community centre at Kasai Ki=20
chali, Ahmedabad. The two of us-Ajay Raina and Leya Mathew-have been=20
in Ahmedabad for about Four months now. I am a Kashmiri Pandit and a=20
filmmaker by profession. Leya Mathew is from Kerala and has just=20
finished her Masters in Media & Communication.

The reason why I went to Gujarat is simple. I still cannot go back=20
home even 12 years after the forced exodus of my community because of=20
threats, killings, rape and torture of Kashmiri Pandits by the=20
separatist Kashmiris. Six months after the carnage in Gujarat, though=20
everybody says that, 'situation in Gujarat is normal', the 46=20
families in Gasiram ki chali still cannot go back home. I as a=20
Kashmiri was a victim yesterday. Today it happens to be a poor=20
Gujarati Muslim. Tomorrow it may be the turn of anybody-a poor Hindu,=20
Christian, Dalit, Brahmin, Secularist or a pseudo-Secularist=8A.I grow=20
more certain day by day that we must start in Gujarat, what we did=20
not do in Kashmir. I want to go back home too=8Abut first lets think=20
about Gujarat, lets bring them home to a safe and secular India.

I and Leya decided to go to Gujarat to see if there was something we=20
could do to assuage the suffering of the people there. After groping=20
around frustrated for about a month and a half at the larger problems=20
of relief, rehabilitation, compensation, justice and long-term=20
peace/reconciliation efforts, we finally decided on something=20
definite that could be done by just two of us.something on a small=20
scale, something that needed to be done.We decided to adopt two small=20
localities of about 100 odd households (Kasai ki chali & Gasiram ki=20
chali) for relief and rehabilitation.

We raised money and resources (thanks to our friends) to help them=20
rebuild their homes, buy utensils, stoves, books and uniform for=20
their school-going kids. Most people here, we were then told, only=20
had one change of clothes while they were in the camp.

We have so far received Rs 53,000 in cash donations from friends all=20
over India. In addition to this, we have also received relief in kind=20
(cloths/utensils/bedding items/sewing machines etc;) sent to us by=20
friends in Delhi and Mumbai. With the money; we gave monetary=20
assistance to a few people who needed a renewed start for their=20
businesses. We bought 16 sewing machines and about 15 peddler carts /=20
lorries for people to peddle their roadside ware. We spent 15,000 Rs.=20
to manufacture 10,000 kites (with messages to the countrymen printed=20
on them, on the occasion of India's Independence day). We managed to=20
sell almost all of them to people and organisation all over India and=20
are hoping to make a profit of about Rs. 35,000, which would be=20
utilized for further relief/rehabilitation/and for employment schemes.

In the two months we have been with the people of Kasai ki Chali, we=20
have yet only partly managed to help them rebuild their lives, to get=20
them back on their feet again and bring them to a safe home=8Ain a city=20
where they were born, which they must not stop loving. We are living=20
with the people in Kasai ki Chali; we were with them when they were=20
scared about the Rath Yatra, on 12 July, which eventually passed off=20
peacefully. While we see some hope for a better tomorrow in the eyes=20
of the people of Kasai ki Chali, the same can not be said about the=20
people of the other Chali=8A

We have tried our best, but much more still needs to be done. With=20
time, we have realised that our and their problems are more complex=20
than they seem on surface. We now strongly feel that only clothes,=20
utensils, sewing machines, lorries and fans are not enough for the=20
Muslims of Kasai Ki Chali & Gasiram ki chali. That is of course=20
essential to get started with their lives, but it is still a long=20
road from here, especially for the people of Gasi Ram ki Chali,=20
living just across the wall from Kasai ki Chali.

Kasai ki chali has a concrete wall that separates them from those who=20
had burnt their houses, which in some misplaced way can provide them=20
with a semblance of security, but Gasiram ki chali does not have even=20
that. In Gasiram ki chali, before the riots, the Hindus and Muslims=20
used to live cheek by jowl. All that is to be seen here now are rows=20
of about 46 Muslim houses, which need to be rebuilt completely before=20
the residents can even think of shifting back. Even after they shift=20
back, they will have to live, every single day, next to the very same=20
people who ran after them with "khula talwars". There is a proud=20
temple watching over the colony. The saffron flag is flying high. The=20
killers' and the plunderers of these homes are still walking free.=20
They have built a little illegal pan shop to block the path which=20
allowed the Muslims of their locality to walk in. The reason the=20
Muslims of this locality can not now go back and rebuild their homes=20
is this pan shop which stands in the way of their natural and=20
fundamental right to return home. We can not bring down the pan shop=20
or the walls of mistrust that has sprung up between the Hindus and=20
Muslims of Gasi Ram ki Chali, what we can certainly try to do is help=20
them demolish the walls around them on their own=8Ain good time. We=20
have an idea.

OUR IDEA:

We cannot live their lives for them, but what we can do is introduce=20
some positive and constructive energy into their lives. This, we feel=20
will be much more effective than building any walls on the=20
boundaries. An informal school for children is the idea we have come=20
up with. It is actually already in its beginning stages. The classes=20
are on. We have a volunteer teacher on our rolls. We also hope to=20
start a similar initiative in Gasiram ki chali for the Hindu=20
children. If both these ideas work out, then in time, we hope to=20
integrate the two informal schools to start a permanent community=20
centre for the Hindus and Muslims of this locality.

There had been groups of dedicated people working with the children=20
when they were in the camps. Though most people from the groups have=20
gone back, they still remember the leha didi, chuppa rustam Sardar=20
ji, siren didi, Delhi ka didi and others. The group from Bangalore=20
has returned with SAATHI friends from Bombay to continue the work.=20
Bindu, Altaf and Raja come everyday for 2 hours to play with the=20
children in our chali also. They are guiding Sulekha, the teacher in=20
our chali. The children enjoy it immensely. They sing, they shout,=20
they play with jigsaw puzzles and they paint.and they love their=20
teacher.

Sulekha, incidentally, came to us through a friend. She was named=20
Sulekha, but her Muslim friends call her Zulekha and yet others call=20
her Julie. She comes from Sardar society nearby, where the residents=20
(both Muslim and Hindu) made sure that not a single incident of=20
violence occurred. She used to work in a garment factory earlier. Her=20
Hindu employer has laid her off along with all the other Muslims who=20
used to work in the factory. She worked with the victims in Shah Alam=20
camp for 3 months, helping out with administrative work, counseling=20
women and children, dressing up wounds as part of the Red Cross team.

The group from Bangalore with their SAATHI friends from Bombay will=20
continue to come in shifts for atleast two months. We hope by then we=20
will have two local teachers who can carry on their work.

What we plan to do from now on is.

1) Continue with Relief/ Rehabilitation of Gasiram ki chali residents=20
as soon as they are able to return home.

2) Start a community centre for Kasai ki Chali. (which would=20
eventually lead a similar initiative in Gasiram ki chali for the=20
Hindu & Muslim Children)

What we need:

1) For Relief and Rehab:

More Materials and Money for Relief/Rehabilitation (household stuff=20
/ kitchen utensils etc:) of Gasiram ki chali residents=20
as soon as they are able to return home. A friend has already pledged=20
46 fans for 46 households=20
in Gasiram ki Chali.

2) For the Community centre. (for the initial trial period of 3 months)

Logistics:

Rent payment for a room in Kasai ki Chali.

Salary for Sulekha (already in our employee) and for one other teacher

Yet to employ.

Material for informal classes for children:

Stationary, colors, puzzles, mind games, comics in Gujarati and
Hindi, video tapes of Laurel and Hardy etc.
Money for spending on school fees, school bags, stationary,
Textbooks
Learning (English classes) / Recreation material (for children
and Adults):
Beginner's books for English Language learners, charts, games
-ABCD blocks etc.
Newspaper, Books (in Gujarati and Hindi), Paintings about
Communal harmony etc;

Material for Sewing Classes for women:

Sewing machines (4 machines are already pledged for by Delhi
friends),
Plain Cloth, Scissors, Chalk, Measuring Scale
Establishment and Administrative costs for 3 months;

We are also documenting on Video.the ongoing process of our work in=20
the two localities. So far we have utilized our own meager resources=20
from our personal savings towards the cost of shooting the video=20
footage and for our stay in Ahmedabad. We would hope for some=20
monetary assistance for this project also. Please get in touch with=20
us on our e-mail address.

People wishing to contribute in cash can send us their Cheques and=20
DD's in the name of:

"GUJARAT EDUCATION SOCIETY / PRASHANT"

Addressed to:

AJAY RAINA.
C/O Raiz Sheikh,
ELITE FLATS,
OFF NARAYAN NAGAR ROAD,
NEAR JETTABHAI PARK Bus Stop
PALDI,
AHMEDABAD 380 007.

Our Tel: No in Ahmedabad is 079-5329018 (PP)

All contributions will be exempt income tax under the relevant=20
sections of Income Tax act.

This account will accept only contributions from within India. We=20
will keep you posted about the progress and about the money received=20
and spent.

Ajay Raina / Leya Mathew.

ajayraina@v... rainaajay@h...

_____

#4.

ERASING MEMORY ON & OFF SCREEN
I.K.Shukla

Fascism ever in fever, ever in fear, never sleeps. That is why it=20
becomes a political pathogen that requires surgical removal from any=20
viable and modern polity. It is in the interest of the polity to=20
remove it fast and uproot it for good.

Before I talk of the Erasure of Memory venture of the Sanghis I would=20
touch upon a point that calls for our urgent attention as a nation.

In view of what Modi and his cohorts in Gandhinagar and New Delhi did=20
to Gujarat, they must be debarred from contesting the prospective=20
elections there. They have disqualified themselves by their deeds and=20
forfeited their eligibility as a political party by their crimes. The=20
constitutional framework of India does not admit of communal-fascist=20
and theo-terrorist outfits bidding for power or accommodation in the=20
polity. If they are not debarred and disqualified, on their record of=20
massive corruption and monstrous crimes, it would be violative of the=20
intent and import of the Constitution. More, it would be insidiously=20
impugning and perversely suborning the Constitution.

"If a man like Modi could be rewarded for savagely terrorizing his=20
fellow citizens with a senior position in government, if the party he=20
led and his lieutenants can be allowed to compete in an election, how=20
are we ever to root out the culture of impunity...?" (The=20
Complexities of Justice by Ike Oguine, New Internationalist, London,=20
Aug. 02) In this excerpt for Modi just substitute Foday Sankoh, the=20
Sierra Leone rebel, guilty of horendous crimes, and you get the drift.

Let the high and low among criminals responsible for Gujarat=20
holocaust be brought to justice first, to retrieve our humanity. "The=20
struggle against impunity is not just about setting limits for=20
acceptable behaviour...,not just rejecting the rule of naked force:=20
it is also about repairing some of the damage we (and others) have=20
done to ourselves."

For this, the first requisite is apology and remorse, not "pride",=20
not convoluted rationalisation, not horrid "historical revenge", not=20
crass "cultural nationalism", not revanchistic Akhand Bharat or=20
nihilistic "Atom Bomb" Vajpayee, not bloody vote bank maniac "Loot=20
Khoon" Advani.

>From the HinduTaliban, genuine apology to Gujarat and India is due, genuine
remorse before international community is imperative, for the beastly=20
crimes and the abysmal evil that they drenched the nation with. After=20
a period of genuine absence from the scene, during which they restore=20
Gujarat and its humanity substantially, if not wholly, they may be=20
trusted to have owned up their guilt,and begged pardon from all=20
concerned, mainly the victims. But the restoration and restitution,=20
as also the apology must be public and total to be convincingly=20
contrite.

And, the apology should include a pledge, in humilty and earnesness,=20
from HinduTaliban and saffronazis, that they would abjure their=20
criminal and anti-national drive to erase memory by demolishing=20
monuments and shrines, by desecrating churches, mazars and idgahs, by=20
forcibly changing the names of cities and the character of=20
traditions that a whole nation has distinguished itself and lived by=20
over eons.

But the above must be done by a collective claiming to be human and=20
humane. If such aspirations do not figure in the collective's psyche,=20
and it has become brutal through practice, and sub-human through=20
barbarism, then savagery itself becomes its tribal religion, replete=20
with its own incantations, its own fetishes, its own bloody rituals,=20
and its own death dance. This collective is bogged in the compost of=20
its own stagnation, the sterility of its own stasis. This is an=20
existence to which vermin and vegetables belong.

Seen in the light of what saffronazis have been doing thus far to=20
tear the nation apart, from pogroms against minorities to=20
bowdlerizing history, from destroying brick by brick the edifice of a=20
constitutional government and polity to abandoning the foreign policy=20
postulates of long standing, the saffronazis will stay alive only by=20
remaining destructively and dishonestly active. No political party=20
could match them in kleptomania nor in degrading and denuding the=20
nation so doggedly, so shamelessly.

It is in this perspective that cuts demanded by it in Jang aur Aman=20
(War and Peace) should be understood. Gandhi preaching non-violence=20
is anathema to a party wedded to violence, hence Gandhi must be cut=20
out. Signatures in blood congratulating India's nuclear toymakers are=20
OK for rousing revanchism (against Pakistan), but maybe not=20
aesthetically or morally so rousing for the audiences now, or abroad.=20
So, the saffros opted for cowardice disguised as discretion rather=20
than valor in asking that it be cut. It also recalled Advani's=20
bloody yatra of early 1990s when his acolytes placed their blood in a=20
pot and dipped their fingers in it to paste it on his forehead, a=20
symbol of their support for a Ram temple in Ayodhya. Scenes showing=20
Vajpayee and other leaders are deemed, oddly, derisory (!) by the=20
holy rollers, if they are shown in a contemporary episode with their=20
triumphal gestures. This must be prevented. It does not matter if all=20
of this was splashed across Indian newspapers of several languages on=20
front pages, and to the glee of the saffros.

Dalit leaders lamenting the desecration of Buddha's birthday when the=20
nuclear explosion (obscenely and insultingly named Buddha Smiled)=20
took place in Pokhran (Rajasthan) should not be shown as it would=20
amount to "privileging" the opinion and showcasing the hurt of=20
millions of the downtroden for millennia, and planned by the saffros=20
to be kept that way. It is only the doctored and distorted history=20
that the Hindunazis would be comfortable with. Truth bites them hard,=20
makes them lose nerve and go mad.

With the Hindunazis to raise the question of requirements of=20
filmcraft, artist's autonomy, freedom of expression, purposive=20
authenticity, multi-angled perspective, juxtaposition of visuals,=20
overt contexts and hinted subtexts, public issues, and visionary=20
responsibilty - is to cry in the wilderness, both because they are=20
terribly limited in intelligence and also because they, with their=20
atavistic blinkers on, would not allow another vision, an alternate=20
viewpoint, aired or broadcast.

This is nothing surprising. Fascists are born with these disabilities=20
and attendant disasters. Why should it be different in the case of=20
India?

____

#5.

ASSOCIATION OF PEOPLES OF ASIA,
(Regd.)
Gandhi Ashram, Kingsway Camp,
Delhi-110009

Chairperson:Ms Nirmala Deshpande

THEME OF THE SEMINAR

" Kashmir Imbroglio: A Quest for an Equitable Resolution"=
.

SUB-THEME

Kashmir, a legacy from British empire has defied its resolution in=20
last more than 50 years. The problem has been complicated by rigid=20
positions of India and Pakistan and their emotional attachments to=20
the issue. The people of Kashmir have their own aspirations and have=20
been struggling for the same. Can there be a resolution of this=20
conflict which is fair and equitable to all and which can bring peace=20
in the sub-continent?

JUSTIFICATION FOR ORGANISING THE PROPOSED PROGRAMME

The purpose of the seminar is to provide a platform to all shades of=20
opinion on Kashmir dispute to speak their mind and an opportunity to=20
the knowledgeable audience to discuss the issue objectively for a=20
fair and equitable solution. Elections are round the corner in Jammu=20
and Kashmir. There is already increasing pressure from the=20
international community on Pak to stop forever cross border terrorism=20
and on India to resume talks with Pakistan to resolve Kashmir issue=20
which has become flash point of the World. The elections in Pakistan=20
in October might also become relevant.

DATE & VENUE

Sat 14 September 02 0930Hours to 1730 Hours at India International=20
Centre Annexe, 40, Max Mueller Marg, New Delhi -110003

Sponsors

1. Indian Council of Social Sciences Research, New Delhi
2. India International Centre, New Delhi
3. Noida Management Association, Noida

NAME & AUTHORS OF KEY PAPERS WITH THEIR TENTATIVE THEMS

NAME =
=20
SUGGESTED THEME

1. Admiral Ramdas, Former Chief of 'An overview of Kashmir
Naval Staff, Mumbai. Problem and its
Implications'.

2. Lt.Gen.Moti Dhar (R) Former Vice 'Official Positions of Parties
Chief of Army Staff, Pune. to the Dispute and Scope of
=
=20=20=20=20=20=20=20=20=20=20=20=20=20=20=20=20=20
Mutual Accommodation'.

3. Mr. Yusuf Tarigami,MLA,(CPI) 'Elections in J&K and
Anantnag. Beyond'.

4. Representative of Hurriyat Conference 'Unfullfilled Aspirations of
Srinagar. Kashmiris'.

5. Mr. Balraj Puri, Jammu. 'Regional Autonomy within
Autonomous J&K'.

6. Shri Indresh Kumar, Pracharak RSS 'Trifurication of J&K'.

7. Commodore UC Bhaskar, Dy. Director
IDSA, Delhi.

8. Mr.Abdul Rashin Shaheen, MP 'Role of National Conference
National Conf.,Baramullah. In Resolution of Kashmir
dispute'.

9. Ms Seema Mustafa, Journalist 'Relevance of=20
Bilateralism'.

10. Dr. Arjun Makhijani 'US Interest and its
President of Institute of Energy Implications'.
& Environmental Research
Washington

11. Lt.Gen.V.R. Raghavan, Delhi Policy 'Line of Control and its
Gp., Delhi. Efficacy for Resolution of
Dispute'.

12. Prof. Riyaz Punjabi, Editor, Delhi 'Suggested just and
equitable Resolution'.

13. Prof. Kanti Vajpayee, SIS, JNU, 'A case for just and
New Delhi equitable solution'.

14. Shri Harish Khare, Hindu, New Delhi 'Future Projections for J&K'.

DISCUSSANTS
1. Maj. Gen. Ashok Krishna (Retd.), Defence Analyst and Author
2. Prof Amitabh Mattoo, JNU,Author
3. Prof. Pramod Misra, Delhi University, Author
4. Maj Gen Afsir Karim, Defence Analyst and Author
=20=20=20=20=20=20
OTHER PRESENTERS
1. Prof. M.H. Querishi, JNU, Author
2. Mrs. Syeda Hamid, Peace Activist
3. Prof. K. Warikoo, JNU, Author.

(Approval is being obtained from all above participants)

BROAD PROGRAMME

SATURDAY 14 SEPTEMBER 2002

0930 - 1030 hours Opening Remarks by
Ms Nirmala Deshpande
Inaugural Address by Shri I.K. Gujral,
Former Prime Minister.
Key Note Address by Shri Ram
Jethmalani, M.P., Chairman Kashmir
Committee
1030 -1100 hours Tea
SESSION -I

1100 - 1300 hours The Kashmir issue and respective
Positions
Qs/Ans
1300 - 1400 hours Lunch

SESSION - II

1400 - 1600 hours Options for conflict Resolution
Qs/Ans
1600 - 1630 hours Tea.

SESSION - III

1630 - 1725 hours Discussion

1725 - 1730 hours Vote of thanks

RSVP:-
Col. (Retd.) Virendra Sahai Verma
Seminar Co-ordinator

Seminar Office
75, Sector-29, Noida (U.P.).
Tel: 91-4450774
4615964 (O)
Fax:011-4693302
Email: virendra@d...

____

#6.

EPW
August 10, 2002

Vanniyar Separatism
Nebulous Issues

The vanniyars' case for a separate state stands on loose ground. The=20
movement, nevertheless draws attention to the current absence of a=20
rallying point for a caste-based party in the context of the=20
strengthening multi-caste, multi-party nature of electoral politics.
P Radhakrishnan
http://www.epw.org.in/showArticles.php?root=3D2002&leaf=3D08&filename=3D477=
2&filetype=3Dhtml

____

#7.

The Hindustan Times
Wednesday, August 21, 2002 | Updated: 00:54 IST

RSS conducts Gujarat-type survey of Hindus in Jaipur
August 20

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has launched a campaign to draw=20
the city's Hindu youth into its fold. The "Hindutva consciousness"=20
drive includes a comprehensive survey of the city's population, at=20
the end of which the RSS hopes to have a database of every Hindu boy=20
and young man in Jaipur.

Over the past several months, groups of RSS pracharaks have been=20
visiting the city's Hindu localities to spend time with youngsters.=20
Their mission, as revealed by an RSS worker: "To proselytise=20
uninitiated Hindus, and to give memberships to those who show=20
sympathy for the Sangh."

The recruitment drive and survey has so far covered only two areas,=20
Sanganer and Khatipura - a measure of the thoroughness and attention=20
to detail with which the pracharaks have been doing their job.

A similar survey by Sangh affiliates had been reported from Gujarat a=20
few months before the March-April violence. The survey had allegedly=20
helped identify Muslim homes and shops to the mobs of Hindu killers=20
in the aftermath of the Godhra carnage.

The kshetriya pracharak for RSS's Rajasthan unit, Shankarlal,=20
however, denied any survey or Hindutva drive. "We are visiting houses=20
to extend invitations for Raksha Bandhan festival that we organise in=20
every mohalla to take an oath for the defence of our nation. We have=20
been doing it for the last 50 years, you have noticed it only now."

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