One Hundred Years Of...Adapting

"Hindu or Muslim does not matter. You just have to be qualified for the post," says Ram Madhav, when asked if a Muslim can head the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Madhav-who has served as the National General Secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and is also associated with the RSShowever, says that the RSS believes this country to be a Hindu nation. In an interview with Outlook editor Chinki Sinha, he talks about the organisation's views on Hindus, Hindu Rashtra, ghar wapsi, love jihad, caste, reservations, political influence, Adivasis, the three children norm, women... and his new book. Edited excerpts from a video interview:

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Your new book Shakha to Nation carries interesting speeches from Sangh pracharaks over the years. How did you come up with the idea of the book?

As an organisation, the RSS is a little difficult to understand but very easy to misunderstand. The misunderstanding stems from the fact that there is not much literature about what the RSS stands for or what its leaders have articulated. That kind of literature is available to the followers, but the public has always depended on the critics of the RSS to understand the organisation. The understanding has largely been very lopsided. So, we thought about presenting the views of the RSS leaders—from the first chief, who founded the organisation in 1925, to the current chief, Mohan Bhagwat, who is the sixth chief.

It's not easy for any organisation to complete 100 years. If you could elaborate on the adaptability factor.