Go Unlimited with Magzter GOLD

Go Unlimited with Magzter GOLD

Get unlimited access to 10,000+ magazines, newspapers and Premium stories for just

$149.99
 
$74.99/Year
The Perfect Holiday Gift Gift Now

The recipe of trumping odds: The RSS playbook

Hindustan Times Jammu

|

October 13, 2025

I have been watching the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) — in its 10Ist year now — for more than 50 years. An obvious curiosity arises about the secret of its success.

- Shashi Shekhar

People may point out that Uttar Pradesh chief minister (CM) Yogi Adityanath and Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma don’t belong to the RSS fold. That is true, but it is equally true that once you are part of the BJP, you can't escape the RSS ideology.

The political arm of the RSS, the BJP, is leading the coalition that is in its third successive term at the Centre, and the Sangh's ideological roots are deepening. The RSS has achieved this despite stiff opposition from the Communists, socialists, and the Congress Party.

How did the RSS succeed? I would like to elaborate on four instances from different decades of Indian history that help explain this.

MORE STORIES FROM Hindustan Times Jammu

Hindustan Times Jammu

In Bondi attack, echoes of age-old anti-Semitism

Rising hatred for the global Jewish community is rooted in the failure to draw a distinction between Israel’s actions in Gaza and the depoliticised lives of ordinary Jews

time to read

4 mins

December 19, 2025

Hindustan Times Jammu

AI carbon footprint equals 8% of global aviation emissions

The boom in artificial intelligence in 2025 led to as much carbon dioxide (CO2) being released into the atmosphere as New York City does annually, according to a new study, The Guardian reported.

time to read

1 min

December 19, 2025

Hindustan Times Jammu

Hindustan Times Jammu

Adani Group’s internal project manager to raise $1 billion

A private company owned by billionaire Gautam Adani and his family has been entrusted to oversee the infrastructure projects of all listed firms of the Adani Group as part of the tycoon’s plans to capture margins that would otherwise have gone to external parties

time to read

2 mins

December 19, 2025

Hindustan Times Jammu

LAWYER TOLD TRUMP LEGALITY OF THIRD TERM IS UNCLEAR: REPORT

Retired Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz told President Donald Trump the U.S. Constitution was not clear about whether he could serve a third term, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

time to read

1 min

December 19, 2025

Hindustan Times Jammu

'BENGAL JOB SCHEME TO BE NAMED AFTER MAHATMA': CM

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said that her government would rename its job guarantee programme after Mahatma Gandhi, in an announcement coming ona day the Lok Sabha passed a bill that seeks to replace the two-decadeold Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA.)

time to read

1 min

December 19, 2025

Hindustan Times Jammu

Think long term on Delhi pollution

The Supreme Court is right; CAQM must go beyond reactive measures to deal with NCR's toxic air

time to read

2 mins

December 19, 2025

Hindustan Times Jammu

Need urgent roll-out of UPI market-share caps

here isa warning for all trusted systems in India in Indigo's recent operational meltdown.

time to read

3 mins

December 19, 2025

Hindustan Times Jammu

Why India’s tourism sector needs a regulatory rethink

India’s monuments, mountains, beaches, and cuisine make it one of the world’s richest travel destinations.

time to read

4 mins

December 19, 2025

Hindustan Times Jammu

US readies new sanctions if Putin rejects peace deal

The US is preparing a fresh round of sanctions on Russia's energy sector to increase the pressure on Moscow should President Vladimir Putin reject a peace agreement with Ukraine, according to people familiar with the matter.

time to read

1 min

December 18, 2025

Hindustan Times Jammu

America-first compass for new security strategy

The US's new National Security Strategy signals a “hands-off” approach towards matters that are not of American interests. All tools will be used to ensure the US's primacy remains intact

time to read

5 mins

December 18, 2025

Listen

Translate

Share

-
+

Change font size

Holiday offer front
Holiday offer back