The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there.”
Thought travels with a speed differently than men. Some eras are so progressive that a lot changes in a short time and then some epochs are so dull and unchanging that nothing moves. My relationship with my grandfather is more than that of being bodily. I am biologically related to this man, who is a RSSite right wing conservative, a Vaishnavite Hindu, in the sect of Ramanuj Acharya, Proponent of Bhakti Vedanta, a proud Bhumihar Brahmin, who has hated communists and seculars and congressmen all his life. And here I am, a naive class-conscious communist, a snake in the eagle's shadow, someone who disowns all this heritage with only one line, "The History of hitherto all societies have been a history of class struggles."
But, with some time, that I spent with my grandfather, I have realized that my perception of this man is quite naive. I warn people of reductionism and not dwelling in detail, I often say, God lies in the detail (Contrary to the popular aphorism, The Devil lies in the detail), But here I am, reducing my grandfather into a label of being a conservative, naive, almost blinded by faith, person with no free thinking of his own. So, I decided that I will give him a fair share of honest judgement.
My Grandfather has always been a Swayamsevak. Since the age of 8 I guess, he used to go to the Shakhas of RSS. But there is more to it.
This piece ''My Grandfather's economic Policy" is not just a personal piece rather it gives us an insight into the way people of the past used to look at Money, relations, Social capital and more so, to where in this, Caste plays a role.
Every home, especially every Joint family today, which is joint mostly on occasions like festivals or weddings, there is an intricate and convoluted politics always going on, the way money of every household is allocated is decided by this politics and Everyone in the house, from an infant of 1 day to a old man of 90 participate in it directly or otherwise.
There has always been a judgement about my grandfather's spending habits at my home. Nobody supports him, not even his ardent follower of his thoughts, not my RSS devotee uncles, not his own wife, My grandma. Everyone hates when he gives money to any needy, to any one who is in need, to temples, to orphanages, to the extent that sometimes, he has to himself take money from someone as a debt to run the household.
Now, this is a separate issue, why a man of 75 has to run a house still. This has to do with the sad and lazy state of affairs of my parent's generation.
I also used to think that Daaji (as I call him), is not very kind to people at home but he is almost a saint for people outside. He is one of the most regarded people in the locality, in RSS District branch and almost a trustee of a big temple near, Panch Mandir. I was biased already because of his RSS leanings and these things also fueled my dissatisfaction.
One day, I asked him, with an intention to know, What's up with that. What he told me made me rethink many of my presumptions about him. It might be a very wise economic policy of My Grandpa to be this generous to people outside.
As he narrated,
"I know, that in many places where I have given money, as debt or otherwise, it will not come back. In one sense, My Money got in loss. But understand this, When I came to this city in 1978, and earlier in 1972 in Ranchi for the first time, I came and had no money. I came and took the name of Saryu Singh (My Great Grand uncle perhaps), and got my way. I took his name and got a stay. He had given money to people here for someone's education, for someone's health. Through me, he repaid Babu Saryu Singh.
So I decided that I will myself invest money in people. This is not debt, there is nothing as such as debt when it comes to public relationships, it is all investment."
As he kept talking, I kept correlating it with the Social Capital. Bhumihar is such a dominant caste in Bihar, and the way it became dominant, was like this only. It is not this simple in Casteism that Brahmins are above and so on. Caste battles are economic and political, which varies region wise. Somewhere, The Rajputs dominate because they converted people in their favour, through money or power or fear, somewhere you see Bhumihars etc. Yes, although the sad thing remains, that never ever can a Dalit dominate this hierarchy. The Dalit and Adivasi dominates only when he acts through a Barel of a gun. When he becomes a Naxal, when he becomes a Mao-vaadi.
We, upper castes of Bihar, had it easy. I am not saying my Grandfather did not struggle. All I am saying that it was almost next to impossible for a Dalit to be in the position, economically that my Grandpa is. His struggle was to transition from a feudal society to a capitalist society, where you have to sell your labor and earn in the service sector because the land was losing its value as compared to Services and industries. Capital was developing in India and as a result of which, even the wealthy of villages, with non-liquid assets had to sell their assets and come to cities to earn. To study and to earn.
It was a time of Hugh socio-economic churning for an Upper Caste Bhumihar household in Bihar.
My Grandfather went on.
"When I came to Patratu, this was almost a Naxal place. Communists dominated everywhere. We were marginal in the sense that we were Dikkus, the outsiders, as Adivasis used to call us. Slowly with the help of Indian Government who started PTPS (Patratu thermal Power station) with the help of USSR, established colonies for working Electrical Engineers, who became Colony-walas as opposed to the Sadaan Population of Patratu, who remained Basti-walas. This division remains even in my age.
Then, Established in 1989 the first RSS school SSVM here in Patratu. I donated in that. Along with that, I donated in almost every temple that you see today in Patratu. I had to establish again the Hinduist values of our culture back to this place. It took time.
Whoever I have given money, were not people of just RSS. These were notable Middle class Communists, who used to Hate RSS and any kind of religiosity whatsoever. They used to call us RSSites oppressors and fascists. and I had to change that."
And How did my Daaji change them? By helping them in need. And this explained me why Communists and socialists declined in Patratu and RSS rose to these big heights in these places. It is really convoluted. Here is my Theory. Actually contrary to the Activist Communists and socialists, who were real on field ideologues, and were very helpful to the marginalized and the oppressed, the Middle class communists and socialists were extremely selfish and self-centered. Since, the religious morality they rejected and never attempted to develop a morality of their own, they became extremely Hedonists with no regard for societal collectivist values. Ironical, isn't it? A socialist without social values. But such is the wierdness of Indian Socialists and communists. And the caste consciousness and anti-caste awareness is a new phenomenon. Earlier, in the 70s-80s, it was a common phenomenon, for a noted communist, almost a Naxal sympathizer, to be a member of Brahmarshi Samaaj, a Brahmin caste group.
Until, the Ranveer sena, by this Brahmin militant leader Brahmeshwar Singh "Mukhiya", took a open massacre fight with the Naxals, it was a common practice in Bihar and Bengal to be communist and a Brahmin altogether.
In short where the Middle class Socialism was selfish and did not help people, Middle class RSSites made an identity of helpers and sevaks for all. And this charitable work was a targeted approach taught at RSS. Charity became a central economic idea by RSS in the 80s-90s. As opposed to organised strikes for state action for welfare, which was the way of the socialists, RSS cadres made social capital for both their organization and themselves through charity. They made name. They made social capital.
And with these works, We see, even in turmoils like the Jharkhand Mukti Movement, by people of Jharkhand like Binod Bihari Mahto, a noted Aadivasi leader, and numerous, naxal coups in Bihar, Bengal and Jharkhand, We saw continuous growth of Middle class and hence the Middle class RSS cadre. Also, the Liberalization of 1991 helped them. And thus, we see, today, why RSS is the way it is. Mass middle class Hindu support. Even I know muslims who are ardent followers of RSS. This is not an attempt to white-wash RSS.
Rather consider it a documentation of an unknown history of a place called Patratu, of regional Politics of this place in connection to the national politics through the lives of a man, who will still be hated at home for being such an extravagant Philanthropist, People at my home being unaware of the fact that how much role he and people like him has in making RSS mainstream in all of India and Making the idea of Hindutva, a marginalized fascistic idea with no theoretical merit to become a victor of current times.
I respect my grandpa as my rival victor. A man, who was an ideologue, a worker, an ardent and honest fighter of the RSS, who fought for the idea he believed in. I wanted to document his story. Still now, His economic policy returns us favors through strangers whose father, My grandfather once helped. I thought, this man cannot pen his history, but his grandson can. So be it. I have done a bit and will continue doing it, whether one reads or not. This is a tribute from an ideologue to an ideologue, a Grandson to a grandpa, an honest man to an honest man, and from me to my Daaji.
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