Among the various success stories of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in Kashmir is the story of Hindu Yuvak Forum. It used to be the youth wing of the RSS in the Kashmir valley, established in 1981, created to unite the youth of the Hindu community. For ten long years till the forced mass exodus of the Hindu community from the Kashmir valley, it had become the most recognised face of the RSS and its ideological affiliates among the Hindu youth in general. Its headquarters were in the historic Sheetalnath complex in Srinagar; and it holds a right even now on that part of the old premises in the Sheetalnath grounds.
It has been said earlier as well that RSS used to work in the valley of Srinagar under various pseudo names and banners due to the government restrictions on its activities. Those names included Shri Bhat Seva Ashram, Dev-sthan Suraksha Samiti, Sri Ramakrishna Mahasammelan-Vivekananda Kendra and Hindu Youth Forum. Actually, Hindu Youth Forum started in the Anantnag town immediately after the lifting of the ban on RSS in 1977. It spread its wings in Srinagar city as well. With the passage of time, it attracted the attention of the top RSS leadership in the Kashmir valley and they started facilitating its activities in various colleges and University of Kashmir.
In 1981, as per the directions of the RSS leadership in Jammu and Kashmir, the name of Hindu Youth Forum was changed to Hindu Yuvak Forum (HYF). In the annual meeting of the RSS Kashmir Vibhag, this author was entrusted with the responsibility of the Hindu Yuvak Forum (HYF) and appointed as its General Secretary. Vinod Mattoo was entrusted with the work of Coordinator for schools and colleges. Dr. Ashwani Wangneu, a research fellow in the University of Kashmir was the President of the HYF. In the year 1982, I was elected the President of the Forum and Ajay Chrungoo was elected the General Secretary. Pradeep Mattoo was the Office Secretary and Vinod Kher the Treasurer. In the annual general meeting of the HYF in 1982, Utpal Kaul was appointed the Adviser of the HYF. The HYF also declared an Executive of 21 dedicated members.
In a short duration of six months, HYF established its units in all colleges of Srinagar city and also the Kashmir University. It developed a close proximity with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and also assumed its (ABVP’s) role in the valley of Kashmir. An impressive number of youth working in various central semi-government institutions, banks and insurance companies in Srinagar district joined the HYF. It organised the first youth convention in the year 1983 at Vikram Guest House, Mandir Bagh, Srinagar which was attended by around 300 young men and women. Dr. Badri Nath Kalla, Sanskrit scholar and teacher in the Kashmir University was the chief guest on the occasion.
The above successful convention was followed by a special programme aimed at organising students of technical institutions. Accordingly, students of Government Medical College-Srinagar, REC-Srinagar and Polytechnic College participated in the programme. The entire responsibility of the function was taken over by the GMC-Srinagar unit comprising its students namely Ajay Chrungoo, Pradeep Mattoo, Surinder Kaul, Ashwani Pandita, Vinod Bakshi, Punit Dilawary and others. Dr. K.L.Choudhary, HoD-Medicine in GMC. Srinagar was the special guest in the programme.
The first two-day annual camp-cum-workshop was held at Gosain-Gund Ashram in Anantnag district. The workshop was attended by 30 youth activists. It chalked out an annual plan for the organisation which besides the regular activities adopted SEVA project aimed at helping needy families of the society. Adv. P.N.Bhat, a senior and prominent socio-political figure of Anantnag addressed the gathering in the camp and provided very useful guidelines in the workshop to the participants.
During the same year-1983, HYF organised a four-day tour of Mahesh Sharma, All India General Secretary of ABVP in the Kashmir valley. He stayed in our out-house in Srinagar and toured three districts including Srinagar, Baramulla and Anantnag. An elaborate meeting of the HYF Executive was also organised in Srinagar in which he guided all the activists in regard to the expansion of the youth movement. It was also decided in the meeting to have the second youth convention in the year 1984.
In June 1984, the second annual convention was organised at Vikram Guest House. The function was presided over by Dr. M.K.Teng, HoD, Department of Political Science, Kashmir University. Besides other regular activities of the organisation, scholarships were distributed among the meritorious students of the Hindu community in Kashmir. In this convention, it was resolved to make the HYF a pan Kashmir valley organisation. The dates and venue for the next workshop-cum-camp for two days were also finalised in the convention. The national song ‘Vande-Mataram’ was recited by the gentry present in the hall at the conclusion of the function.
Membership drive was undertaken in two Degree colleges in Baramulla & Anantnag respectively with limited success. In the month of August 1984, an annual workshop-cum-camp was organised at Vivekanand Kendra, Nagdandi-Achabal. It was attended by 35 activists from various parts of the valley. Again here an annual planning was chalked out. It was decided unanimously to organise a big youth convention at Srinagar for two to three days in July 1985. Pt. P.N.Bhat and Pt. Harji Lal Jad were kind enough to be present in the workshop on the concluding day and they also addressed the activists therein inspiring the youth activists to lead the community by their example.
The then RSS Sambhag Pracharak (J&K) Indresh Kumar was on a five-day tour of the Kashmir valley in the month of September 1984. The HYF organised a special meeting of the activists in this connection. He addressed the activists of the organisation and also endorsed the decision of the workshop-cum-camp to organise a two-three days convention at Srinagar in the year 1985. He said that the RSS would do everything possible to make it fully successful. He also advised the full team to invite a few youth activists from Jammu as well in the convention and encouraged everyone to work tirelessly for the welfare of the society and the good of the country.
Immediately, the preparation started to make the convention a historic event. Planning and execution became the main two instruments to move ahead. As we were in the thick of it all by November 1984, my revered father had a fatal hypertension stroke in the month of December 1984. He was in the hospital for ten days but couldn’t recover and passed away on 22 December 1984. His sudden demise shattered the whole preparation for the convention which was by then named as the ‘Hindu Youth Convention-1985.
All this sad development forced us to go slow on the issue. My yagnopavit and marriage dates were also finalised for the month of June 1985. It was a challenge of a lifetime; and we in the HYF decided to go ahead as per the programme already fixed earlier. My personal challenges at the family level coupled with the challenges of the organisation didn’t deter us and we went ahead with complete dedication and commitment to the cause. Indresh Kumar guided the whole team of HYF and took the responsibilities to book the Chief guest and the presiding dignitary for the Convention as per our priorities.
The delegate registration for the Youth Convention started in the month of June 1985 and by the end of the month around 500 youth delegates were registered. Some more faces among the youth got activated and it included besides others Dilip Kaul, Dr. Ramesh Razdan, Dilip Parimoo, Surinder Dhar, Vijay Kaul and Sanjay Raina. The whole of the Vikram Guest House was booked for three days from 5th July to 7th July 1985. Delegates from different corners of the Kashmir valley reached the venue of the Convention on 5th June 1985. Adv. Ramesh Arora & Adv. Meenu Kaul from Jammu and Adv. T.N.Razdan from Rajouri attended the convention as special delegates.
The two-day Hindu Youth Convention was taken to the logical conclusion under the guidance of the Sabhag Pracharak, Indresh Kumar. The then ABVP North Zone Organising Secretary also played a key role in organising the historic convention. This hugely successful convention was attended by more than 500 delegates. Justice Shivnath Katju, the President of VHP, Sushil Modi, General Secretary of ABVP, Prof. D.N.Madan, Principal of Gandhi Memorial college and Indresh Kumar attended the convention as special guests. Justice Katju presided over the function, Sushil Modi was the chief guest and Prof. D.N Madan in the capacity of the Chairman, Reception Committee welcomed the guests in the concluding function of the convention which was attended by more than 1,000 people.
The Convention passed resolutions saying that the idea of mass-exodus due to the Islamisation plan in the valley was an imminent threat to the minority Hindu population in the valley. National newspapers like The Hindustan Times, Indian Express, Organiser, Panchajanya and local newspaper Martand covered the whole event. A souvenir named Harmukh covering all these cuttings and details of the Youth Convention was released after the Convention. The senior most leader-activist of the Kashmiri Pandit community, Pt. Amarnath Vaishnavi was specially honoured in the open session of the Convention.
The fears came true and the forced mass-exodus took place in 1989-90 due to the Islamic fundamentalism and terrorism. Hindu Yuvak Forum (HYF), keeping in view the need of the times, amalgamated itself in the Panun Kashmir in 1991 at Jammu along with the J&K Sangarsh Samiti, Delhi headed by Vijay Handoo. Thus the cadres of the HYF reorganised themselves in Jammu under a new banner and took the movement for ‘existence in exile’ to new heights by their hard work, dedication and profound commitment.
