A conspiratorial tactic? Uncovering alleged RSS-linked provocations after Pahalgam massacre

By Shamsul Islam*

On April 22, 2025, Islamist terrorists massacred Hindu tourists in Pahalgam, but Hindutva groups could not exploit the tragedy to incite widespread violence against Muslims due to acts of bravery and compassion by local Muslims. Syed Adil Husain Shah, a Muslim horse owner, confronted the terrorists and sacrificed his life to protect a Hindu family. Surviving Hindu tourists expressed gratitude to local Muslim horse owners, taxi drivers, guides, and traders who risked their lives to ensure their safety. Pallavi from Karnataka, whose husband Manjunath Rao was killed, recounted how three local Muslims escorted her and her son to safety, chanting “bismillah” as they carried her son and consoled her. Their driver, Afreez, also stayed with them.

Similarly, Chhattisgarh BJP youth wing leader Arvind Agrawal credited guide Nazakat Ahmed Shah with saving his family by shielding his daughter and another child during the attack and rushing them to safety. Nazakat’s cousin, Syed Adil Husain Shah, died confronting the terrorists.

Unable to incite mass violence, some Hindutva elements allegedly resorted to conspiracies by planting Pakistani flags to provoke communal unrest. In West Bengal, on April 30, 2025, police arrested Chandan Malakar and Progyajit Mondal, linked to Sanatani Ekta Manch, for placing a Pakistani flag near Akaipur railway station and planning to write inflammatory slogans like “Hindustan Murdabad” to disturb communal harmony.

In Punjab, on the same day, Vikram Anand was identified via CCTV for hoisting a Pakistani flag outside a Hanuman temple in Ludhiana to disrupt peace. In Jharkhand, on May 4, 2025, Pakistani flag posters and images of Pakistan’s army chief appeared in the Jharkhand High Court premises, with no formal inquiry yet initiated.

These incidents raise questions about possible links to the RSS, known for its clandestine operations, as detailed in Sadanand Sapre’s 1997 book, Param Vaibhav Ke Path Par, published by Suruchi Prakashan. The book describes the RSS’s mafia-like structure, using fronts like Hindu Jagaran Manch to evade accountability. For instance, the RSS distanced itself from Hindu Jagaran Manch after attacks on Christians in the late 1990s and from Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal when their actions drew scrutiny. Sapre notes that forums like Hindu Jagaran Manch operate without formal membership or registration to avoid legal oversight, existing in 17 states under various names [Sadanand Sapre, Param Vaibhav Ke Path Par, Suruchi, Delhi, 1997, p. 64].

The book also reveals RSS members posing as Muslims post-Partition to infiltrate the Delhi Muslim League and uncover their plans. [Ibid., p. 86] Rajendra Prasad, in a 1948 letter to Sardar Patel, warned of RSS plans to incite communal violence by having members disguise as Muslims to attack Hindus and vice versa. [Rajendra Prasad to Sardar Patel, March 14, 1948, cited in Neerja Singh (ed.), Nehru - Patel: Agreement Within Difference, NBT, Delhi, p. 43]

Given the RSS’s history of conspiratorial tactics and the failure of Hindutva groups to turn Hindus against Muslims after the Pahalgam massacre, authorities must investigate potential RSS involvement in these flag-planting incidents. The democratic-secular fabric of India requires vigilance to prevent such divisive conspiracies.

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*For more writings: http://du-in.academia.edu/ShamsulIslam. Facebook: https://facebook.com/shamsul.islam.33. Twitter: @shamsforjustice. Blog: http://shamsforpeace.blogspot.com/. Books: https://tinyurl.com/shams-books

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