Dismantling the RSS
Calling on Canada to ban the RSS network for its history of violence, foreign interference, and its growing influence in Canada.
WHAT'S
HAPPENING
Dismantling the RSS
The Indian government has – as we have warned over the years – and its affiliated Rashrtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) wing have begun escalating foreign interference and violence on Canadian soil.
It is time to ban the RSS network in Canada. As a result of its violence past and continuous call for the marginalization of India’s religious minority groups, the RSS network must be included on Canada’s list of banned terrorist entities. RSS, was founded in the early 20th century to make sure that India evolves into a country that marginalizes its minority religious groups, including Muslims, into second class citizenship. The RSS is a fascist paramilitary group whose early ideologues were inspired by Nazism. These entities have a long history of violence. They also have a large network of groups across the world, including in Canada.
Canada must make sure that any political, trade, or economic relationship with India will prioritize human rights. Neglecting this means becoming dangerously complicit in the crimes of the RSS’s various groups, including the BJP, a party that dominates Indian politics. These crimes include violence against religious minority groups in India, including Muslims. They include, for instance, the Islamophobic massacres carried out in Gujarat state in 2002, resulting in the deaths of over 2,000 Muslims.
The increase in concern and interest within Canadian civil society when it comes to the actions of the Indian government has not been accompanied by action. We need to see action taken to dismantle the RSS terror threat in Canada.
NCCM HAS SUCCESFULLY PUSHED FOR:
- The federal NDP to endorse our call to ban the RSS.
- In conjunction with many partners, after the linking of India-state operations to foreign interference, murder, and extortion of dissents in Canada, Canada to halt free-trade agreements with India and to expel diplomats.
- India to be included in the ongoing foreign interference studies in Canada.
MP Chandra Arya flying RSS flag outside of Canadian Parliament
IMPACT STATS
Dozens
of shakhas, or branches of the RSS’s main proselytization group, the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS), are registered across Canada, often using public school grounds for their meetings.
Millions
of dollars have been raised by RSS affiliated tax-exempt charities in Canada and sent to India for the network’s ideologically driven work there.
2000+
Deaths from the 2002 Gujarat riots, linked to a group called the VHP. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) is an RSS network group with an especially violent track record, having been implicated in the 1992 demolition of India’s centuries-old Babri mosque, as well as the 2002 anti-Muslim riots in Gujarat state, which resulted in at least 2,000 or so deaths. The VHP has been operating in Canada since 1995.
A SNAPSHOT | OUR WORK
2020 - Defending Civil Liberties in Peel
COVID-19 was a challenging time for all Canadians, including Canadian Muslims.
In provinces like Ontario, where gatherings were limited to no more than five people during the Ramadan celebrations, Muslim families were unable to break their fast together or gather for worship. However, various local governments across Canada made one-time exceptions for Muslims to broadcast their call to prayer – including in Peel.
NCCM worked with local cities to make that happen – but RSS-affiliated activists pushed back hard in Peel to ban the adhan exception. In one case, NCCM worked with PDSB to respond to disturbing statements in response to the Adhan COVID exception, successfully advocating for accountability after Ravi Hooda, a school council chair.
2022 - NCCM Publishes Brief on RSS and Section 35 of IRPA
This published report highlighted public comments by fourteen high-ranking officials from the BJP as Canada was preparing to attend the G-20 in India. It reveals the racist, violent and often genocidal rhetoric they have espoused in recent years.
Much of the hatred directed at India’s Muslim community can be traced to the mobilizing language of these BJP officials, who have incited riots, called for Muslims to be exiled, and threatened them with retribution. These Islamophobic remarks are never made clandestinely, but rather expressed openly at rallies, on social media, and in media interviews.
This report argued that Canada can send a strong message around genocide by clearly noting that the individuals named in the report will never be eligible to visit or reside in Canada, as per section 35 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.
2023 - NCCM and the WSO Publish RSS Report
Along with our partners at the World Sikh Organization (WSO), we published a ground-breaking report on the RSS and its network in Canada, detailing the various entities at work inside the network, from education, humanitarian groups, and partisan politics.
The report received national media attention.
September 2023 - NCCM and the WSO Call for Action After Assassination in Canada
NCCM CEO Stephen Brown, along with the World Sikh Organizations, announced on Parliament Hill our demand that the RSS network be banned in Canada, and that Canada suspend diplomatic relations with the BJP and India.
This press conference and demand for action went viral and raised concern to the Indian government, to the point where NCCM’s Twitter page was banned in India.
2023 - NDP Calls for Ban on RSS
Jagmeet Singh demanded a ban on the RSS and sanctions against Indian diplomats as Canadians loudly raised their voices in calling for action.
2024 - NCCM Advocacy Day on Banning the RSS
Muslim leaders, as well as Dalit and Sikh leaders, came from across Canada to meet with politicians from every major party to urge action on dismantling and banning the RSS.
2024 - Foreign Interference Study and Bill C-70
NCCM was proud to support the foreign interference registry contained within Bill C-70, while raising numerous concerns in relation to other sections of the Bill that could have unintended consequences. NCCM continues to monitor the Bill to determine whether India-state and RSS agents are forced to approriately register.
2024 - India Free Trade Agreement Paused
NCCM, alongside many other organizations, called for Canada to halt free trade agreement negotiation with India while India-state agents were attacking Canadian citizens. NCCM engaged closely with Minister Ng’s office on this question and was pleased to see her commitment to pause negotiations, given the revelations about foreign interference and murder.
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