Teaching radicals a lesson part of dharma: RSS chief

Two days after PM Narendra Modi vowed to avenge the killing of 26 defenceless persons in Pahalgam, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat fully backed the national response saying it was the duty of the king to protect his people and the king will do his duty. He underscored that teaching extremists a lesson was part of the dharma.

Bhagwat, addressing a book launch event here today, invoked the annihilation of Ravana by Lord Ram and of Kauravas by Arjun as acts of dharma and said extremists have to be eliminated for their own good.

“Non-violence is our dharma but to not be tormented by extremists and to teach them a lesson is also our dharma,” Bhagwat said after he launched an INK publication, “The Hindu Manifesto”, authored by Swami Vigyanananda.

The chief of RSS, ruling BJP’s ideological mentor, went on to add that India had never insulted or harmed its neighbours. “And yet if someone (read Pakistan) falls to the depths of vice, what’s the solution? The king is duty-bound to protect his people. And the king will do his duty. This is dharma,” he said.

Earlier in his remarks, defending a strong military response by India to the April 22 Pakistan-sponsored attack in Pahalgam, Bhagwat gave the example of Ravana’s killing. “Ravana was a worshipper of Lord Shiva, a master of the Vedas, an efficient king. He had all the ingredients to make a good man but his corrupted body and soul clouded his goodness. No matter what anyone did, he could no longer be instilled with goodness. So there was just one solution left to make him a good man again — destroy his body and soul so that he can return in a new body and soul. So Lord Ram annihilated him. This annihilation cannot be called violence. It is non-violence,” Bhagwat said.

The top Sangh leader also noted that non-violence was India’s nature but extreme punishment was a must for those that are incorrigible.

“We in India even see if our enemy is good or bad. We mete out punishment accordingly. But when someone cannot be cured in any way, we have to send them where they can find basic ingredients of goodness. This is for their own welfare,” he said.

The book by Swami Vigyananand was described by Bhagwat as an important research project for those who seek to understand Hindu religion for the all-encompassing philosophy that it is. Vigyananand, an IIT Kharagpur graduate, joined the world of sainthood early in life and has drafted eight codes in his book to dispel what he calls the “anti-Hindu narrative”.

Top News