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On 5-2-1948 Government of India banned the Sangh on the blatantly false charge of being involved in Gandhiji's assassination. Exploiting the people's faiths in the Mahatma the ruling Congress workers instigated people to attack swayamsevaks. The people were so much provocated that they publicly showered on the RSS and Guruji all manner of imaginary invectives. But on July 9, 1949, Government was obliged to unconditionally lift the ban on the Sangh. The RSS made no commitment to the Government and yet the ban on the Sangh was lifted. The Government led by Nehru desperately clung to the straw in the form of a private letter (since published) from Guruji to Shri Mauli Chandra Sharma, in response to the battens personal doubts. The dramatic event took place during the ten days from 1st July to 10th July, 1949. On behalf of Government of India Sardar Patel, who, was recuperating at Dehradun, asked Pt Dwarika Prasad Mishra, the then Home Minister of Madhya Pradesh who mediating for a compromise, to represent him. Balasaheb Deoras was the RSS spokesman, Shri Bhayaji Dani and Pt Mauli Chandra Sharma, who was intermediary met in Nagpur. I remember how firmly and with great confidence Balasaheb explained his position and also the Government humbly making the request. The discussion went somewhat along the following lines
D.P. Mishra : Sardar Patel feels the ban on the RSS be lifted.
Balasaheb : We are not bothered whether the ban is lifted or it stays. From December 9, 1948, swayamsevaks had started offering satyagraha. It continued till January 21, 1949. More than 80,000 swayamsevaks courted imprisonment by resuming activities of the shakha in all the leading towns and cities of the country. In a few months the swayamsevaks were released. We have full faith in the swayamsevaks' capability. We have also been maintaining contact with them. We are now free to work in various fields of society and to influence the public opinion in the country. We will start our social activities by adopting all legal and fair means. No field of social service is taboo for us. Nor do we have any reason to shun the political field.
D.P. Mishra : The ban is meaningless, if Guruji writes to the Government simply to lift the ban that should suffice to end the ban.
Balasaheb : We no more trust the Government's words. Sardar Patel had said the Government would think about lifting the ban provided they were given a written constitution of the RSS as it functioned before the ban. Accordingly the Constitution was drafted by an expert Shri T.R.V. Shastri and was sent to the Government by Guruji in the first week of April 1949.
It is now three months and the Government is sitting pretty. Naturally, we can no more trust Government assurances. Guruji will no more write to the Government.
D.P. Mishra : Please believe me. I have spoken to Sardar Patel. Even Guruji writes to Pt. Mauli Chandra Sharma a private letter to clear some of his doubts, that should suffice to have the ban lifted.
There is no harm in writing a personal letter to Shri Mauli Chandra Sharma. If at all it can only help to lift the ban on the Sangh. Balasaheb wrote to Guruji conveying this position. The letter was sealed and handed over to Shri Mauli Chandra Sharma to be delivered to Shri Guruji who was then lodged in the Baitul jail. Guruji read the letter and accordingly wrote the private letter to Shri Mauli Chandra Sharma which Pt. Mishra also read. He promptly telephoned Sardar Patel at Dehradun and apprised him of the development. This was followed by the sudden dramatic lifting of the ban on the RSS. This personal letter from Guruji to Shri Mauli Chandra Sharma has since been published. It is indicative of Balasaheb's confident arguments and the Government's pleading stance.
Another incident I remember is reminiscent of Balasaheb's style of thinking objectively about the various public activities in the country and workers involved in them. The incident that I am going to narrate happened when Balasaheb was in Delhi. While on tour after taking over the responsibility as Sarsanghchalak. The Congress had -just announced a grand scheme of opening hundreds of branches of Congress Seva Dal in Delhi to attract students and the youth to the Congress party. Expecting a caustic reaction to it from Shri Balasaheb which could make a lively copy for the Press, columnists and reporters of newspapers made a beeline for the RSS office in Delhi to meet Balasaheb. Balasaheb's talks with the Pressmen turned out to be quite educative and expressed his objectives thinking about Congress workers. The gist reported by Balasaheb was something like this.
Balasaheb : I am glad to learn the announcement by the Congress Government. Surely, their undertaking should encourage the youth students to think of the country and mould their lives in the right direction. (For the Pressmen this was the most irrespective response from Balasaheb).
Reporter : It is said that the Seva Dal branches are likely to adversely affect the RSS. What do you think?
Balasaheb : I do not think so; not at all. The strength of the student youth in Delhi is today more than a hundred thousand, out of which only 10 or 12 thousand are involved with the Sangh who come under the RSS influence. Barring them if the Congress leaders and the Seva Dal workers are going to inculcate into the other thousands of young students a sense of patriotism it would be welcome by anyone who care for society.
Reporter : We are stunned by this most unexpected response from you. We assumed you would oppose the idea. Do you have anything else to say about the Congress Seva Dal?
Balasaheb : Congress leaders will certainly start Seva Dal branches with great fanfare. But, I am afraid, they may not be able to nun the branches for long. After some time, say a few months, they are likely to stop functioning.
Reporter : Why do you think so?
Balasaheb : The reason is obvious. The Congress-.party has lots of funds and also various means of publicity and propaganda. Congress leaders and Seva Dal workers do not believe that by running Seva Dal branches they will be able to build up a phalanx of selfless and devoted workers. For our part, we have full faith that by starting shakhas of the Sangh and by making them strong enough we will be able to build up workers who will be devoted to the nation, expecting nothing in return. This is the reason why in spite of Government's opposition, clamping of a ban. adverse publicity in the Press and other media, we continue to run the shakha with our hard work and unswerving faith. The idea behind the opening of Seva Dal branches is to form large volunteer corps for the political party that the Congress is. It can't therefore be the medium for man-making, for character- building and so the Seva Dal branches will come to nothing.
What Balasaheb said to the reporters and the conclusion that he drew after objectively examining the Congress leaders' ideological position came true. After a lot of tomtomming, hundreds of Seva Dal branches came into being only to close down in due course.
Today Balasaheb is not with us. In view of his physical incapacity he handed over charge to Prof. Rajender Singh. Dependent upon others even for his physical existence, Balasaheb pulled on for more than two painful years and died a natural death. It is every swayamsevaks' prayer that his revered leader may attain eternal peace. The swayamsevaks' resolve to work according to Balasaheb's expectations and expand the Sangh activities to cover the entire society would be the true tribute to the departed soul.
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