India will be powerful, not aggressive: Bhaiyyaji -Governance Now

India will be powerful, not aggressive: Bhaiyyaji

Ravindra Sathe’s book ‘Rashtrabhav’ explores the framework for redefining nationhood, identity and civic responsibility in modern India

Geetanjali Minhas | April 21, 2026 | Mumbai

#Nationalism #BJP #RSS

India is poised to emerge as a global power but will remain rooted in its civilisational ethos of non-aggression and harmony, former RSS General Secretary Suresh 'Bhaiyyaji' Joshi has said.

He was speaking at the launch of “Rashtrabhav,” a book by Ravindra Sathe, chairman of the Maharashtra Khadi and Village Industries Board. The event organised by Mihana Publications on April 16 at Vasant Smruti, Dadar was attended by Rahul Narvekar, speaker, Maharashtra assembly, Dada Idate, Amit Satam, president of Mumbai BJP; and BJP MLA Atul Bhatkhalkar, among others. It underscored an emerging narrative in India’s public discourse: nation-building as a cultural, moral, and civilizational project-rather than just a political or economic one.

Joshi said that while many nations equate power with military expansion, India’s philosophy is fundamentally different.

“India will become powerful, but it will never become aggressive, expansionist, or oppressive,” he said, adding that India’s national identity is grounded in non-violence, cultural continuity, and social harmony principles that distinguish it from conventional global power models.

Atul Bhatkhalkar noted that “Rashtrabhav” explores nationalism through historical, cultural, social, economic, and political dimensions.

A key theme of the discussion was the distinction between land and nation: where land represents geography and nation represents a shared emotional and cultural consciousness.

Speakers stressed that nationalism is sustained through language, traditions, and collective memory. The erosion of these, they warned, weakens the very foundation of nationhood.

Referring to thinkers like Swami Vivekananda, Bhatkhalkar said India’s historical mission has not been conquest, but spiritual guidance.

Echoing this, Sathe said his book aims to make citizens more aware of India’s civilizational heritage and inspire them to preserve it. He added that his intellectual journey began during his involvement in the Ram Janmabhoomi movement, which motivated him to write extensively on nationalism.

Joshi introduced the concept of Dharma as a framework for understanding contemporary governance and society. Emphasising upon Achar Dharma (individual conduct) and Samaj Dharma (social responsibility), he said these ideas, are increasingly reflected in governance approaches that prioritize duties alongside rights – illustrated by initiatives such as Kartavya Path.

“This signals a broader shift toward a duty-based civic model, where national development is tied to moral and social responsibility rather than purely legal compliance.”

A significant part of Joshi’s remarks focused on what he described as ‘undoing historical distortions.’ He characterized the Babri Masjid demolition as an act of national restoration rather than a religious conflict -framing it within a larger effort to reclaim civilizational identity.

“This perspective aligns with wider developments such as: the construction of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, renaming of colonial-era places and reforms in legal frameworks to remove colonial legacies. These steps represent a broader ideological shift from the margins to the center of public policy,” he said.

In his concluding remarks, Joshi said that the goal is not merely political transformation, but a deeper cultural and societal evolution.

He noted that while citizenship can be defined legally, building a nation requires cultivating a shared civilizational identity. “This involves aligning national duty with cultural revival and historical consciousness.”

India’s trajectory is toward becoming a powerful yet non-aggressive nation—where identity, spirituality, and governance are closely intertwined.

Comments

Other News

Import duty on major edible oils cut

The government has reduced the Basic Customs Duty (BCD) on major imported crude edible oils with a view to moderating domestic edible oil prices, providing relief to consumers and mitigating inflationary pressures arising from the sharp increase in international edible oil prices.

From pyramid to platform: BRICS agenda for Global South

In his opening address at the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi on September 12, prime minister Narendra Modi did something India`s diplomacy has been building towards for three years: he moved the ‘Voice of the Global South’ from a slogan to a work plan. Addressing the leaders, he argued that t

How to realise the full transformative potential of PM-JAY

The Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY), a welfare scheme which covers approximately 45 crore beneficiaries across India, provides cashless health cover of Rs. 5 lakh per family per year. It is the largest health insurance scheme which helped crores of poor families by reducing out-of-pocket expend

The missing men in India`s family planning story

Every pregnancy requires two people. Yet India`s family planning programme continues to ask only one of them to bear almost all of its medical consequences. The newly released National Family Health Survey-6 (2023-24) confirms just how entrenched this asymmetry remains: 36.5% of currently married women a

`Development must be judged beyond GDP, with rights and justice at core`

Delivering the IXth Chief Justice M.C. Chagla Memorial Lecture on ‘Human Rights and Sustainable Development Goals’, in Mumbai Friday, former Chief Justice of India Bhushan R. Gavai questioned whether conventional economic indicators such as gross domestic product (GDP), national income,

RTI exposes Rs 16,909 crore cost blowout on Mumbai-Goa Highway

Seventeen years after the centre first approved the widening of National Highway 66 between Mumbai and Goa into a four-lane highway, a fresh RTI reply has revealed a sharp escalation in the project`s sanctioned cost. According to the RTI reply obtained by activist Jeetendra