Sangh@100: Still searching for practicable economic doctrine

Despite all its achievements, Sangh Parivar lacks a coherent economic philosophy. Shreyas Ubgade explains

- Shreyas Ubgade explains

At his Vijayadashami address this year, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat sought gradual economic reforms rather than sweeping change, amid the US tariffs

“Swadeshi”, “Swavalamban”, “Aatmanirbhar”. These words rang out once again as the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) marked its centenary earlier this month.

From the dais in Nagpur, sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat invoked them in his annual Vijayadashami address, this time delivered against the backdrop of the US imposing punitive tariffs on India.

“There is no substitute for swadeshi (goods manufactured from indigenously procured materials) and swavalamban (self-reliance),” Bhagwat declared, a familiar refrain, but one that carries particular resonance when the global order itself feels uncertain. For the millions of swayams-evaks who track his every word — many of whom now hold commanding positions across the political and administrative landscape — such statements are not merely symbolic.

The Sangh’s discomfort ‘unbridled globalisation’ has long been part of its ideology. US President Donald Trump’s trade wars and the rising contest over global supply chains have, if anything, reinforced that scepticism, even giving the organisation its quiet “we told you so” moment visa-vis its political arm, the BJP. The RSS and the BJP have not always been on the same page on the matters of economy.

Bhagwat’s tone was cautionary. He spoke of “flaws in the prevailing economic system” and the “concentration of economic power”, calling for gradual reforms rather than sweeping change.