Thomas Blom Hansen, Qurban Ali & Harsh Mander on the RSS’s role in communal violence

In this episode of Saffron Siege, the anthropologist Thomas Blom Hansen and journalist Qurban Ali join Harsh Mander to examine how the RSS has triggered, enabled and executed riots, targeted communal attacks and other forms of communal violence in India over the 100 years of its existence. Qurban Ali who has reported on many of these incidents on the ground documents how many commissions have found the RSS culpable in riots dating back to Sholapur in 1967. Hansen talks about how violence is a central thesis of the RSS not only as a physical act but as a state of mind. You can listen to audio versions of this conversation on: 🎧 Spotify: https://bit.ly/4r8Mefa 🎧 Apple podcasts: https://apple.co/47QUGIs This episode is part of Season Two of Partitions of the Heart. In this season, Harsh Mander speaks to leading scholars and observers who have studied the RSS closely. Together, they examine its roots and core principles, its Hindutva agenda, and its corrosive role in India’s public and social life across a century. “Saffron Siege” runs from 17 September to 3 December 2025, with a new episode releasing every Wednesday. Himal’s podcasts are available on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Production: Imaad ul Hasan, Lydia Smith, Ritika Chauhan, Nayantara Narayanan Support Himal Podcasts and Himal's independent journalism for just USD 5 per month: https://payhere.lk/pay/oee1bdaf1 ♦️Himal Southasian is Southasia’s first and only regional news and analysis magazine. Stretching from Afghanistan to Burma, from Tibet to the Maldives, this region of more than 1.4 billion people shares great swathes of interlocking geography, culture and history. Yet today neighbouring countries can barely talk to one another, much less speak in a common voice. For three decades, Himal Southasian has strived to define, nurture, and amplify that voice. ♦️ Read more: https://www.himalmag.com/ ♦️ Support our independent journalism and become a Patron of Himal: https://www.himalmag.com/support-himal Find us on: ♦️   / himalistan   ♦️   / himal.southasian   ♦️   / himalistan