The Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), a trade union affiliated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), has opened its first permanent office in Kashmir Valley in Barsoo village in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district, marking a shift towards a more visible presence in the region.
The office, located in Awantipora, was inaugurated on Monday. BMS Kashmir in-charge Sameer Kuchay, 36, said the organisation wanted to move beyond its earlier discreet operations and engage more openly with people.
“This is the first experience of a Sangathan office in Kashmir. It is time to work openly and not discreetly. The situation in Kashmir has changed and we are coming forward now,” Kuchay said.
The organisation previously operated from a rented space in Shivpora, Srinagar. Kuchay said the new divisional office was chosen because it was accessible to both south Kashmir and Srinagar.
BMS claims to have 20 affiliated labour unions in Kashmir, most of them based in south Kashmir. The organisation said the office would help coordinate its activities and strengthen its engagement with workers and local residents.
BMS Seeks to Distance Itself From BJP
Kuchay said BMS was independent of political parties and rejected the perception that the organisation was anti-Muslim.
“We are not the puppets of the BJP or any other party. We have nothing to do with politics and nothing to do with religion. There is a feeling that we are anti-Muslim. There is nothing like that. We have nothing to do with religion,” he said.
He added that he had faced hostility after joining the Sangh in 2016, including abuse on social media after posting a video of himself hoisting the national flag.
“I remember posting a video of myself hoisting the Tricolour on Facebook. I received 1,384 comments. Of those, 1,382 were abuses,” he said.
Kuchay said he hoped direct engagement would help change public perceptions of the RSS and its affiliates. “I try to convince people. I tell them, ‘If you feel the RSS is bad, come and join us and see for yourself,’” he said.
BJP leaders in the Valley have reportedly said they were unaware of the BMS office, while the union has sought to maintain a distinction between its activities and those of the party.
RSS Activities in Kashmir
The RSS and its affiliates have traditionally maintained a low profile in Kashmir, particularly in border areas. Sewa Bharti, another organisation associated with the Sangh, has supported schools and projects to renovate temples.
The RSS had some presence among Kashmiri Pandits before suspending its activities in 1990, following the community’s departure from the Valley amid the onset of militancy. Since the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019, the organisation has sought to expand its footprint in the region.
However, the move has drawn criticism from some political leaders.
CPI(M) leader and Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) chief M Y Tarigami described the development as part of a “state-sponsored project” and questioned the space available for independent trade union activity in Kashmir.
“Everybody knows what RSS stands for. They have been openly talking about divisive politics and against minorities. People do understand and realise what it stands for. In any case, there is no space being provided in the Valley for any trade union activism,” Tarigami said.
