It was 1990, and Indian politics was turning around, with the BJP becoming a strong force as a Hindu advocacy party. My father was a staunch Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS volunteer). Still a child, I would accompany him to several RSS-inspired projects nationwide. My father was heading an RSS-inspired institution called Keshav Vidyapeeth.
He was the founding principal and chief volunteer for that project. His involvement in these social projects made me realize that social entrepreneurship was a different world.

With the elevation of the BJP as a Hindu advocacy organization, this Ram Janam Bhoomi movement became very strong under the leadership of L.K. Advani. I still remember the visuals of the pivotal 1990 ‘Rath Yatra’ passing through the streets of Jaipur (Rajasthan, India). When a call was given to all Ram bhakts to visit Ayodhya for Ram Janmabhoomi Kar Seva, my father was the first one to register himself.

In those days, the Sangh organized the travel of Ram bhakt groups to Ayodhya. My father and his Ram bhakts decided to travel to Ayodhya from Jaipur. They took a train to Ayodhya. I still remember the stories he narrated after coming back from there safely.

Entry to Ayodhya was highly restricted per the directives of the then Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Mulayam Singh Yadav. There were headlines in the newspaper where he was found, stating that not even a single flock could enter Ayodhya without his permission. Ayodhya was converted into a fenced prison where no outsiders were allowed. In the era of no cellphones, this movement took place with people-to-people communication and logistics arranged by RSS volunteers in each city and village.

My father went there by train, and then for the last hundred miles, they walked from the countryside via jungles and, most of the time, with minimal food, staying in different small villages at additional Ram followers’ homes.

Finally, on the day of kar seva, millions of Ram bhakts and sadhus suddenly entered Ayodhya. The administration of Ayodhya was surprised, and at that time, the chief minister lost his sanity and ordered firing on Karsewaks, just like in the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

Security forces started firing on these innocent Ram bhakts to stop their march toward the mosque. My father was seeing people falling on the streets when the police started firing. They had orders from the top to kill whoever tried to approach the mosque.

My father saw several of his friends and people from the same group get injured or killed. Fortunately for our family, my father survived the perilous journey somehow. He was stunned to see scores of people die on the streets and near the river Saryu. He saw this with his bare eyes. Although the official death count was reported to be much lower.

My father managed to reach the temple site. He completed the Kar seva and came back to Jaipur safely, feeling satisfied; at the same time, he was sad because he had lost some of his colleagues and friends during the yatra. That trauma was imprinted on his heart forever, but at the same time, he felt a sense of divine contentment.

Mulayam Singh Yadav was labeled a killer of Ram followers in this country. One year later, a new BJP government came to power in Uttar Pradesh under the leadership of Kalyan Singh. He allowed karsevaks to reach the temple site.
I still remember the names of these prominent leaders, and they used to be my father’s friends – Ashok Single, Sadhvi Ritambara, and Uma Bharti. They were all there at Ayhodhya under the leadership of L.K. Advani.

My mother also decided to go to Ayhodha under the aegis of the RSS wing for women. She went via train with a group of ladies, was able to perform Kar Seva at that time, and returned safely.

I witnessed these momentous incidents in my life at a very early age. I was in high school at that time. These moments of fear but pride made a significant impression on my heart and mind forever.

These childhood memories pave the path of your future and are imprinted permanently in your life to shape your mindset. That life event of my father led me to think about social entrepreneurship as a vital medium for changing the world.

My father continued to serve for RSS-inspired projects for the rest of his life. My mother still lives in India; we are both excited about the Ram Temple becoming a reality. Like my parents, it has been the dream of millions of Ram Bhakts who continued to be sheer leaders of this movement over the last three decades.

Whenever I think about those incidents that happened in 1989 when hundreds of Kar Sevaks were killed, I could have lost my father too, but I was lucky that he survived.

When I look back and see how risky life is for those who participate in these public events in India, I get chills. Today, when Ram Temple is being inaugurated by the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, I feel very contented.

Today, the religious freedom struggle, which started over 500 years ago in India, ends. This is a moment of pride and joy for the Hindu civilization, for Hindus in India and worldwide. Today will be cherished by those who lost someone in the movement and by those whose family members have contributed efforts towards this cause.

I am one of them. Jai Shree Ram.

Here is a Hindi poem I wrote on this occasion.

राम जैसा जीवन अगर जीना है।

तो कलियुग में त्रेता युग को जीना है।

सदियों के आदर्श पुरुष को आत्मसात् करना है।

जो आपके जीवन में सीता माता जैसी संगिनी है।

हनुमान, सुग्रीव ओर जामवन्त जैसे मित्र है।

लक्ष्मण, भरत ओर शत्रुघ्न जैसे भ्राता है।

तो आप राम बन सकते है, आप धर्म युद्ध लड़ सकते है।

और चाहे तो अपने लव कुश से भी लड़ सकते है।

हार के भी अपने आप को जीता हुआ महसूस कर सकते है।

अपनी आँख से सीता को धरती में समाते हुये देख सकते है।

फिर भी राम बन के सब कुछ सह सकते है।

अपने अपने काम, अलग अलग नाम,बस एक ही राम|

इसीलिए जय श्री राम जय श्री राम जय श्री राम।

4:06 am

Hindi poetry personal letters ayodhya pranpratishta ram Rambhakt ramjanmbhumi