Sen, Modi and RSS

This refers to two letters in this column under the heading “

>Amartya Sen’s views ” (May 1). Responding to Nobel laureate Amartya Sen’s scepticism about Mr. Modi because of his right-wing links, the two readers have strongly defended the RSS as not being a communal organisation. To set the record straight, let me highlight the views expressed by RSS founder M.S. Golwalkar about non-Hindus: “The non-Hindu people of Hindustan must either adopt Hindu culture and languages, must learn and respect and hold in reverence the Hindu religion, must entertain no idea but of those of glorification of the Hindu race and culture... in a word they must cease to be foreigners; Or may stay in the country, wholly subordinated to the Hindu nation, claiming nothing, deserving no privileges, far less any preferential treatment — not even citizens’ rights” (cited from Guha, Ramachandra (2008),

India After Gandhi: The History of the World’s Largest Democracy , Pan Macmillan, p.19).

S.P. Asokan,

Chennai