All posts tagged: Bhagwats

Why critics oppose RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s US visit

Why critics oppose RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s US visit

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — Mohan Bhagwat, head of one of India’s most influential Hindu nationalist organizations, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), is coming to New York City on Saturday (Aug. 29). His visit might have been a diaspora gathering. Instead, it has become a test of how the U.S. will respond to an organization with an opaque network of affiliates that human rights groups accuse of fomenting religious discrimination and violence. The upcoming “Universal Oneness Celebration” is hosted by American Hindus for Engagement and Dialogue, a nonprofit with links to the U.S. wing of the RSS and founded in 2025. The event is expected to draw 5,000 Hindu Americans along with more than 100 groups, from temple associations to yoga and cultural groups.  Founded in 1925, the RSS is one of India’s most influential social and ideological organizations. Through tens of thousands of local branches and a vast network spanning education, labor, student groups and social services, the RSS has helped spread Hindu nationalist, or Hindutva, ideas across Indian society and has faced criticism for its treatment …

Mohan Bhagwat’s US visit puts RSS’s vision of Hindu unity in spotlight

Mohan Bhagwat’s US visit puts RSS’s vision of Hindu unity in spotlight

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — This Saturday (Aug. 29), Mohan Bhagwat, chief of India’s Hindu nationalist organization, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), is scheduled to give the keynote address at Madison Square Garden for an event celebrating “universal oneness.” The event, hosted by the nonprofit American Hindus for Engagement and Dialogue (AHEAD) Forum, will feature musical performances and communal hymns and is expected to draw more than 5,000 spectators and over 100 groups affiliated with Hindu temples, yoga associations and cultural groups.  “Our job is to sit for a dialogue — mutual dialogue — to understand each other for the betterment of global humanity,” said Sudesh Agrawal, director of the AHEAD Forum. “Our earth is one.” Priya Samant, the spokesperson for the Universal Oneness Celebration, agreed.  “It’s a celebration of our shared goals and our humanity,” she told RNS, adding that Bhagwat will share the stage with faith leaders from different religions, including Islam, Christianity, Judaism and Sikhism. “And oneness does not mean sameness. It means that we can work through our differences, and yet, be one big family.”  And yet, …