Jairam Ramesh cites Nehru–Patel letters to attack RSS and Hindu Mahasabha on Gandhi death anniversary
New Delhi: Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Friday launched a sharp attack on the Hindu Mahasabha and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), citing letters written by India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Deputy Prime Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel to Syama Prasad Mukherjee in 1948.
Marking the death anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, Jairam Ramesh shared a detailed post on social media platform X, referring to historical correspondence to underline what he described as the long-standing concerns of the country’s founding leaders over the activities and ideology of the Hindu Mahasabha and the RSS.
According to Jairam Ramesh, Nehru had written to Syama Prasad Mukherjee just two days before Gandhi’s assassination on January 30, 1948, expressing serious apprehensions about the functioning of these organisations.
He further noted that Patel, who was then the Home Minister, had also written a letter on July 18, 1948, raising similar concerns in the aftermath of the assassination.
“These two letters are a strong indictment of self-proclaimed nationalist organisations,” Jairam Ramesh said, adding that the warnings issued by Nehru and Patel remain relevant even today. He argued that the ideology criticised by the leaders of the freedom movement continues to resurface in contemporary political discourse.
Without naming him directly, Jairam Ramesh referred to a controversial statement made by a BJP Member of Parliament in 2024, recalling remarks suggesting that choosing between Mahatma Gandhi and Nathuram Godse was “impossible”.
Ramesh said such comments exposed a troubling mindset and reflected the ideological lineage that Nehru and Patel had cautioned against decades ago. In his post, the Congress leader also shared a YouTube link to Nehru’s address on All India Radio delivered after Gandhi’s assassination.
He said the speech reflected the grief of the nation and Nehru’s firm resolve to defend India’s pluralistic and democratic values against forces of hatred and extremism. Quoting from Nehru’s letter to Mukherjee, Jairam Ramesh pointed out allegations that the Hindu Mahasabha had violated the ban imposed on it by organising meetings in Pune, Ahmednagar and Delhi.
The letter reportedly mentioned inflammatory speeches made at such gatherings, including statements that Gandhi was an obstacle to the nation and that his death would benefit the country.
Ramesh also shared screenshots of Patel’s letters criticising the RSS and the Hindu Mahasabha, stating that the Home Minister had gathered extensive information on what he described as objectionable activities of these organisations.
Mahatma Gandhi, the leader of India’s freedom struggle and revered as the Father of the Nation, was assassinated by Nathuram Godse on this day in 1948, an event that continues to shape political and ideological debates in the country even 78 years later.
