A Century Of The Sangh: The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s Journey From Margins To Mainstream

Celebrating its centenary year in 2025, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is not merely a cultural organisation, but one of the most powerful entities in India's socio-political matrix. The Sangh, founded in the mid-1920s when India was still a British colony, has evolved over the decades. It has transitioned from a tight-knit band of swayamsevaks adhering to strict discipline into an extensive nationwide network with tens of thousands of daily shakhas. Over the last century, it has been influenced by societal transformation, legal prohibition, political associations, and the reconstruction of national identity.

Founding Years

The RSS came into being, among other things, as a response to the conspiracy theories of national humiliation prevalent after the sudden breakdown of the Non-Cooperation Movement. On Vijayadashami, September 27, 1925, Dr Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, popularly known as Doctorji, founded the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. A Nagpur-based physician and once a Congress member in his youth, his mission wasn’t overtly political. Instead, he was building a disciplined organisation of men who would work to rejuvenate Hindu society from within – a cultural renaissance based on unity, service, and physical culture. The first official shakha was established in 1926, and after some internal discussions, the name “Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh” was adopted in the same year.

Unlike the Indian National Congress, which focused on mass politics and civil disobedience, the RSS chose a strategy of quiet consolidation. Hedgewar discouraged swayamsevaks from direct political participation, believing that national regeneration required sustained social and moral effort. During the 1930s, the Sangh consolidated its operations: it launched the first officers’ training camps (taurig), introduced formal pledges (pratigya), and established administrative tiers. Although its growth was gradual and mainly within Maharashtra, it steadily expanded into northern India. Upon Hedgewar’s death in 1940, M.S. Golwalkar assumed leadership, influencing the organisation’s ideology and direction for more than three decades.

The RSS had initially opposed recognising the tricolour as India's national flag and even refused to recognise India’s constitution. 

Gandhi’s death 

In January 1948, Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated by Nathuram Godse, an RSS pracharak and Hindu Mahasabha leader who had close links to Savarkar. After the assassination, several senior RSS leaders were arrested, and a government ban was imposed on the organisation on February 4, 1948.

The conspiracy charges were later lifted by the Supreme Court of India. Following their release, Golwalkar consulted with then Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel to lift the ban imposed on the RSS. 

Patel insisted on several preconditions: that the RSS adopt a formal written constitution, make it public, pledge loyalty to the Constitution of India, accept the tricolour as the national flag, define the powers of its leadership, democratise through internal elections, require parental authorisation for pre-adolescent members, and renounce both violence and secrecy.

Despite initial rejections, the RSS's constitution was eventually amended according to Patel's wishes, with the exception of the procedure for selecting the head of the organisation and the enrolment of pre-adolescents.

Seeds of a Network

Its political wing, Bharatiya Jana Sangh, was founded in 1951 by Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee with covert support from the RSS. In 1955, the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) was formed to counter Left trade unions, followed by the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) in 1964, which sought to be a platform for Hindu religious leaders. The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) emerged in 1949. Through these affiliates, the Sangh achieved deep reach in classrooms, factories, temples, and legislatures—all while maintaining a posture of political distance.

Golwalkar, during this time, also continued to propagate a vision of India based on Hindu tenets that prioritised cultural unity over political pluralism. 

He had also revered the cow as a ‘Hindu symbol’. Using cow protection as a cause for mobilisation, Golwalkar instructed cadres to hold the biggest demonstrations independent India had seen on November 7, 1966, on Parliament Street in Delhi.

Emergency and Beyond

Indira Gandhi's Emergency in 1975 was yet another defining moment. The RSS was again banned and its members arrested. However, the Sangh emerged from the shadows once more to dominate the opposition and allied itself with all those forces that were anti-government. Upon the expiration of the Emergency in 1977, several ex-swayamsevaks joined the new Janata Party government. Among them were future Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) notables such as Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Lal Krishna Advani.

Fissures within the Janata Party led to the collapse of its government, but in 1980, the Sangh Parivar’s political ambitions were revived with the creation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Initially, the BJP approached Hindutva with caution, but over time, it came to embrace the RSS's ideological direction more openly. By the late 1980s, this connection was evident through the VHP-led Ram Janmabhoomi movement. The demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992 served as both a symbolic and direct expression of this ideological assertion.

Following this, the RSS was banned a third time, but the ban was again lifted within a few months. This period marked the Sangh's initial direct engagement with social issues. In 1974, Balasaheb Deoras, who succeeded Golwalkar as the third Sarsanghchalak, publicly declared untouchability a “blot” on Hindu society. The outreach to Dalits, tribals, and economically weaker sections intensified, aiming not only to address inequality but also to unite diverse Hindu groups under a shared civilizational identity.

Mainstreaming Power

Since the 1990s, the RSS has witnessed unprecedented institutional growth. As the BJP’s influence in national politics expanded, the Sangh played a pivotal role, helping the party form governments in 1998, 2014, 2019, and 2024. Although formally non-political, the RSS began to shape policy debates, influence electoral strategies, and guide leadership choices within the BJP. Over time, its presence behind the scenes became increasingly visible.

The RSS's influence extends well beyond politics. Through Vidya Bharati, it operates tens of thousands of schools; through Seva Bharati, it runs healthcare initiatives; and via Vanvasi Kalyan Ashrams, it undertakes tribal welfare programs. Swayamsevaks are often among the first responders during natural disasters.

While maintaining its traditional structure—shakhas, the guru-shishya model, and a focus on character-building—the organisation has also adopted modern tools, including mobile apps, dedicated media wings, and academic journals, reflecting a blend of tradition and adaptation.

This reflects a broader cultural change initiated in 2016, when the RSS announced it would replace its signature khaki shorts with full brown pants—a symbolic gesture of modernisation intended to appeal to younger generations. During this period, Mohan Bhagwat, the current Sarsanghchalak, also promoted a broader vision of nationalism. He emphasised inclusivity, social harmony, and self-reliance. However, critics argued that these moves were rhetorical gestures rather than meaningful transformations.

And yet the Sangh, in its centenary year, stands at the height of its power and influence. It oversees more than 83,000 daily shakhas; these groups operate in nearly every Indian district and now reach into international Hindu diaspora networks. Its subsidiaries or affiliates dominate or play decisive roles in education, trade unions, publishing, media, rural development, and, naturally, politics.

In celebration of the centenary, the Indian Government announced a commemorative coin and a postage stamp – a gesture that epitomises the Sangh’s transformation from a proscribed organisation to the cornerstone of the regime. National programs, rallies, and outreach initiatives have been organised throughout the year, celebrating what the organisation views as a hundred years of service to the nation.