A new book ‘370: Undoing the Unjust, A New Future for J&K’, published by BlueKraft Digital Foundation, a shadowy Hindu Right-wing organisation, with no specified authors and a foreword by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, claims that Article 370 of Indian Constitution was repealed without keeping RSS in the loop.
The book maintains that Article 370 revocation was solely the brainchild of the prime minister who kept this as a secret from the RSS till a few minutes before the parliament session on August 5, 2019. Only sketchy bits of information was given by Modi to RSS chief, Mohan Bhagwat, minutes before the move.
This is misleading and far from the reality.
Decades Old Campaign
The Abrogation of Article 370 was not a sudden act of 2019 August, but the culmination of a decades long campaign of the RSS and its several offshoots. To understand its consequences for Kashmir, we must revisit its origins.
On February 4 1953, few months before his arrest, the late Sheikh Abdullah reminded Jan Sangh founder Shyama Prasad Mokeerjee about the statesmanship of the late Sardar Patel. Article 370 was incorporated into the constitution under the latter’s guidance and Shyma Prasad happened to be part of those who sponsored the draft resolution for Article 370 of the constitution (Article 306-A) and its adoption on October 17, 1949 in the Constituent Assembly.[i]
Shyama Prasad Mookerjee later on changed his stand and started a campaign against Article 370 after resigning from the union cabinet in 1950. He set up Jan Sangh in 1951 and signed a pact with RSS chief M.S. Golwalkar.[ii]
The supremo of RSS M.S Golwalkar listed three internal threats in the Chapter 12 ‘Territorial Nationalism: Its Fruits’ in his book Bunch of thoughts - Muslims, Christians and Communists.[iii]
RSS adopted a resolution in this regard on March 18, 1998 formally supporting the demand for revocation.[iv] Scrapping of the Article 370 has to be understood in the context of its origins. The ball was set rolling in 1952 by RSS and its revocation was debated by BJP in August 2019.
BJP’s Strategy & Propaganda
The strategy launched by RSS for repeal of Article 370 was two pronged.
One was to question the legality of the Article and the other was to convince the people of Jammu and Kashmir that Article 370 had disempowered sections such as tribals and women.
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) stepped up its plan to reach out to key opinion makers to manufacture consent related to Article 370 of the constitution. When Modi was sworn in as the PM for the first time it was clear that commitments made by the RSS had to be fulfilled. These included scrapping Article 370 and building Ram Temple.
The scrapping of Article 370 also strengthened the idea of RSS for trifurcation of Kashmir into three parts on communal lines – Muslims, Hindus and Buddhist. RSS spokesperson M.G. Vaidya said in September 2000 that this will help to contain violence in the valley as valley only demanded special status. Jammu will be made a state and Ladakh a Union territory.
Whether this will eventually be the shape of Jammu and Kashmir’s map, the revocation of Article 370 allowed the BJP, backed by the RSS, to exercise more control.
The Politics of Control
The BJP's actions following the Article 370 revocation were aimed at establishing comprehensive control over Kashmir's cultural and religious landscape.
The BJP took control of the Jammu & Kashmir Waqf Board, a charitable trust that exercises authority over properties across the region, extending its reach to the administration of Islamic shrines. These shrines in Kashmir serve as ancient repositories of piety and assertions of Muslim identity, yet they have now been transferred to a party committed to Hindutva ideology.
The linguistic landscape is also being systematically altered. Urdu is being marginalised as Hindi and Dogri are actively promoted, while even Kashmiri itself faces transformation from the traditional Nastaliq script to the Devanagari script.
In government schools, children are being required to sing Hindu hymns like "Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram" in classes as part of preparations for Gandhi Jayanti festivals, forming part of a broader indoctrination process. For many Kashmiris, these changes feel less like genuine reform and more like a deliberate attempt to erase their cultural identity.
Throughout history, as we have witnessed, cinema has been employed as a tool for political propaganda to demonise certain groups and promote specific national identities, creating division rather than fostering unity.
"Us vs. Them" narratives dominate such films. Movies often centre on conflict, and when this conflict is framed between distinct communities without nuance, it becomes particularly problematic. One prominent example is the movie "Article 370."
The imposition of right-wing ideology on the Kashmiri population runs parallel to the systematic repression that has been underway since August 2019.
This represents an authoritarian system that is steadily suffocating our democracy, institutions, beliefs, and culture. This is ultimately a battle for the very soul of Kashmiriyat.
This battle cannot be waged without unity and strategic action for which Kashmiris must be prepared.
How to Counter Right-Wing Policies
We must prepare to confront a system designed to preserve power through manipulation, fear, and the weaponization of state institutions. We face not just a right-wing ideology seeking confrontation with Kashmiris, but a regime that treats public institutions as instruments of partisan control.
Across India, institutions meant to protect democracy—parliament, judiciary, Election Commission, even police—are increasingly used as tools of control. We witness tyranny in parliament, where the Speaker treats opposition Members of Parliament not as elected representatives but as schoolchildren to be silenced, suspended, and humiliated at will.
This regime does not fear criticism—it fears unity. If we fail to unite now, we will lose not only power but our identity. What it cannot defeat is a people united in truth, purpose, and determination.
I make this heartfelt appeal to every well-meaning opposition leader to set aside personal ambition, bury party pride, and forget historical rivalries. This is not the time for ego or pettiness—this is the time to rise as patriots, not politicians. If we do not unite now, we will lose everything, including our identity.
Let us rise, organise, and present a single, formidable front to restore dignity to our institutions. Kashmir is not anyone's inheritance and cannot be controlled against the will of its people, not by any inner circle, not by right-wing parties, and certainly not by anyone's personal agenda.
Let us focus on building something new, bold, united, and people-driven. Let this be our moment of courage.
To those who refuse to unite, they should step aside. Kashmir needs visionaries, not opportunists or cowards. History is watching.
[i] A.G. NOORANI, ACCORD & DISCORD, FRONTLINE, VOLUME 27 , Issue 6, March 26, 2019. https://frontline.thehindu.com/static/html/fl2706/stories/20100326270608500.htm
https://ashokkoul.blogspot.com/2013/11/accord-discord.html
[ii] Bruce Desmond Graham Hindu Nationalism & Indian Politics. The origins & development of Bhartiya Jana Sangh Cambridge university press 1990
[iii] M.S. Golwalkar, Bunch of Thoughts, 1968 https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.489044
[iv] A resolution was passed by ABKKM Akhil Bharatiya Karyakari Mandal 18th March 2000 on Jammu and Kashmir. ABKKM is a key decision making body of RSS .
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