Patna: Amid opposition's hue and cry over Budget allocations, RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat has begun his ten-day long visit to Bihar with an aim to expand the organizations' base and task each Swayamsevak to reach out to every rural household of North Bihar before the next Lok Sabha elections.
Bhagwat will spend most of his times in Muzaffarpur, considered capital of North Bihar, to oversee Sangh operations and will directly deliver a message which has political connotations.
According to official communication by RSS regional secretary Mohan Singh, Sarsanghchalak will interact and deliberate on the possibilities of agricultural modernisation and cow rearing but the insiders have a different story to tell.
For organization purposes, RSS has divided Bihar in two parts (Prants) along river Ganges: North and South Bihar. One of the Prant Pracharaks talking to News18 said, "Bhagwat is on a routine visit but this time around he will focus on expanding the base in rural areas. We have our task cut out.”
RSS is operating 1037 Shakhas in North Bihar and the target has been set to increase the tally to 1500 by 2020.
"We have seen significant growth in the last two years during which around 225 new Shakhas (branches) were added," a Pracharak said.
"Growing at this pace we will ensure number of Shakhas is doubled between 2016-2020. It will be a record," he said adding that by the end of this year around one lakh people will be directly connected with RSS in North Bihar.
One of key strategist of the organization, who sits in BJP office in Patna, said that Mohan Bhagwat has a special message for the cadres.
"It has been decided to educate every family of North Bihar about the measures taken in the Budget for farmers and rural sectors and in that process try to connect them with Sangh ideology," he said.
This task has to be completed by November, which means just few months before the next general election.
Explaining the mechanism, RSS worker Sanjeev Kumar said, “This message will be spread by kisan Swayamsevaks because they know the area and they can be handy in connecting new people with RSS. A Swayamsevak will go door to door in their designated area and educate them about the initiatives.”
Sanjeev Kumar says the main reason for raising the issue of cow rearing and protection is the growing illegal trade of beef from North Bihar to other states which he claims runs till Bangladesh.
Muzaffarpur has seen some tense moments as police raided many slaughter houses recently and found tonnes of beef in the slaughterhouses which prompted Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) member Neeru Gupta to personally visit the area.
Many feel that the twin task is bound to benefit Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the silence by its ally Janata Dal (United) indicates its tacit support.
DM Diwakar, sociologist and former director of AN Sinha Institute of Social Sciences, said that caste ridden North Bihar is a fertile land for the Sangh where it smells a chance of polarisation if Hindutva experience works which is not the case in South Bihar.
"South Bihar has traditionally been hotbed of left wing organizations having the support of rural labour class irrespective of castes who pitched themselves against private armies of upper caste landlords. So there was limited scope for RSS to explore possibilities there. However, now even this area felt the Modi wave in 2014. So they (RSS) may be trying to fortify North and then focus on South," he said.
Mohan Bhagwat will spend his last three days in the state capital where he will hold informal meeting with BJP leaders and others.
Within hours of the announcement of Bhagwat's visit, the opposition slammed the move and attacked BJP and chief minister Nitish Kumar. The RJD-Congress combine has accused RSS of making Bihar a second Prayogshala (Laboratory) of Hindutva.
On the other hand, BJP leaders have said that his visit has nothing to do with politics and it was part of nation building exercise.
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