Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), (“National Volunteer Organization”) also called Rashtriya Seva Sangh, organization founded in 1925 by Keshav Baliram Hedgewar (1889–1940), a physician living in the Maharashtra regionof India, as part of the movement against British rule and as a response to rioting between Hindus and Muslims.
The RSS presents itself as a cultural, not a political, organization that nevertheless advocates a Hindu nationalistic agenda under the banner of hindutva, or “Hindu-ness.” The group is structured hierarchically under the guidance of a national leader, while regional leaders are charged with overseeing the local branches. A major emphasis is placed on dedication and discipline, both mental and physical, as a means to restore strength, valor, and courage in Hindu youth and to foster unity among Hindus of all castes and classes. In a recently viral short clip of a group of Muslims marching two men in RSS uniforms is circulating on social media with the claim that Popular Front of India (PFI) activists in Kerala’s Muslim-majority Malappuram district chained and paraded Sangh workers publicly through the streets.
The caption in Hindi with the video translates to, “PFI rally at Chelari in Kerala. Slogans of ‘la ilaha illallah’ are raised and some RSS workers tied with chains and ropes are paraded on the streets like animals. They are tied up and their procession is taken out in ISIS style. How was this PFI hate march allowed by the Kerala government?” Anti Fake News War Room (AFWA) has confirmed that the men seen in the video, including those in RSS uniforms, are PFI workers, and the claim is entirely false. PFI members dragging RSS workers through the streets would have definitely made headlines. However, no such incident was reported recently, even by local media in Kerala. “On February 17, PFI had conducted a march as part of their anniversary. The march was peaceful and no incident of violence was reported. The video that has gone viral was a demonstration held as part of the march. We have not come across any recent incident of PFI activists attacking RSS workers,” confirmed a trusted source. Radhakrishnan M, joint secretary of the Sangh’s Kerala unit, confirmed that there has been no such atrocity against RSS workers as seen in the video. “No such incident as said in the social media post has come to our notice. We would have definitely responded if PFI had tried to forcefully march our members as seen in the viral video. The men seen in the video are not RSS members. It must have been some demonstration by the PFI,” Radhakrishnan said. “This video is from a February 17 Unity March held by PFI in Malappuram, It was only a depiction of RSS workers staged by PFI” said Sudheer, the outfit’s Kerala spokesperson.
Thus, it is clear that the men seen in RSS uniform in the viral video are not actual RSS workers but PFI men dressed in Sangh uniforms as part of a rally.
