An ex-kar sevak now says: I advocate mixed marriages, nobody kills relatives. SUKHMANI SINGH.

HE WAS once a diehard swaya-msevak spouting RSS ideology. Now, he is a born­-again Dalit (low-caste), preaching the religion of humanity. Meet Bhanwar Meghwanshi, a peacemaker and founder of Diamond India - a Hindi monthly which focuses on subjects like communal harmony, casteism, human rights violations and crimes against women.

For this 27-year-old based in southern Rajasthan’s communally sensitive Bhilwara district, the 40-page magazine is yet another tool to preach peace - much like his public meetings and moralistic cassettes. Launched in January 2001 through funds donated by six village school teachers and Rs 1 lakh from 20 apolitical shareholders, the magazine, priced at Rs 10, already has 5,500 subscribers. Interestingly, most of them belong to the RSS stronghold, Mandai tehsil, and were former subscribers of the RSS mouthpiece Panchjanya. Meghwanshi is among the few who practices what he preaches. The magazine itself is an expression of communal harmony with Brahmins, Dalits and Muslims working side by side. There is a strict code of conduct - all Hindu workers must have at least one Muslim friend, they must fight against casteism, child marriage and violence against women. Considering that Bhilwara is a hotbed of all three, that’s a tall order. In fact, only last week, a journalist was sacked after he was caught beating his wife.

BHANWAR MEGHWANSHI: RSS worker turned humanist.

The very first issue created a minor storm. “I advocated mixed marriages between Hindus and Muslims as the most effective way to ensure communal harmony. After all, nobody will burn or kill each other’s relatives,” recalls Meghwanshi, a Meghwal by caste. The magazine also uses facts and figures to disprove RSS propaganda. The impact is evident. Villagers have now begun to ask “why the Bajrang Dal distributes trishuls (tridents) rather than food and why they impart training in lathi (cane) fighting instead of computers,” says Meghwanshi.

And his efforts are not confined to the magazine. On April 14, Meghwanshi released a 25-point “How to Combat Communalism” charter called the Mandal declaration in his tehsil. He also led a seven­ member team on a five-day house-to-house cycle yatra in Rajasthan’s Rajsamand district, exhorting villagers to cite their commitment to peace and amity. Their slogan was Gaurav se kaho aap insaan hai (Say with pride that you are a human). He returned with 700 signatures, including those of Hindu labourers from Gujarat formerly employed by Muslim businessmen. Next month, he plans to hold bhaichara (brotherhood) cricket matches in all the 44 gram (village) panchayats of Bhilwara. “This is an effective way of reaching out to the youth who can initiate change. I have just returned from a tour of Gujarat and I feel Rajasthan should not go the same way. I tell people not to worry about the whole country but to save their own village - that way we can save the whole country.”

Other plans include the formation of Bhajan Mandalis which will travel through villages singing Sufi bhajans preaching daya (mercy) and shanti (peace). Meghwanshi’s present is an effect of his past associations with radically diverse ideologies. At 11, inspired by desh bhakti (patriotism), he joined the RSS. For the next few years, he conscientiously attended meetings, even penning a regular column propounding the RSS ideology in a local newspaper. In 1991, he, along with 250-odd kar sevaks, went to Ayodhya. They were arrested near Agra and spent 10 days in jail. But the turning point came during the Asthi Kalash Yatra (procession of funeral urns) of killed kar sevaks. When the yatra reached Bhilwara, Meghwanshi organised a welcome for the group of sadhus, sants and VHP leaders. His family even prepared kheer and puris for them. But stating that Brahmins could not eat at the home of Dalit, the group asked him to pack the food instead. The humiliation did not end there. Meghwanshi later found out that the food he packed was thrown away. “That moment, when I saw the food strewn on the road, something snapped inside me. I felt enlightened. I realised that all they preached about equality was false. They had no respect for Dalits like me,” he recalls. Converting to Christianity, he spent two years studying the Bible and New Testament. Later, he joined the political arena, working for Ram Vilas Paswan’s Dalit Sena as well, only to face disillusionment. “There was a dichotomy between what Paswan was preaching and his lavish lifestyle. I realised all politicians were just making money in the name of the Dalits,” he says.

A cynical Meghwanshi finally found his real vocation during a meeting with Sufi saint Sailani Sarkar in Ahmedabad, who, refreshingly advocated a new religion - that of humanity. “I was transformed by this meeting. I felt as if I was gripped by a magical energy and suddenly had a new vision. His last words to me were: ‘Jao is India ko diamond banao. Desh ke pathron ko heera banao’ (Make this country shine like a diamond).” And that is Meghwanshi’s goal.

Courtesy: IFJ annual prize report for South Asia.

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