Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat declared in Indore that India has disproved Winston Churchill’s prediction that it would fragment following the end of British rule. Bhagwat contended that while England now appears to be moving toward division, India has maintained unity and purpose.
Speaking at a book launch for Parikrama Kripa Saar by Prahlad Singh Patel, Bhagwat said India is “moving forward on the path of development by proving everyone’s predictions wrong.” He emphasised that India was led by a guiding philosophy blending knowledge, action and devotion, which he asserted has kept the nation cohesive and resilient. He contrasted this with what he described as global conflicts arising from self-interest. India, he said, rises above divisions of “mine and yours” through its spiritual foundations.
Bhagwat drew on India’s history, saying that for 3,000 years it held a global leadership role without conquest or suppression, instead spreading culture, knowledge and spiritual values. He said that despite external predictions of collapse or fragmentation, India sustained its unity.
Referring to Churchill, Bhagwat quoted what he said was the former British Prime Minister’s remark that post-independence India “will not be able to survive and will be divided.” He insisted that this outcome did not materialise. He added: “Now England itself is coming to the stage of division, but we will not be divided. We will move forward. We were once divided, but we will unite that again.”
Bhagwat contended that many global problems stem from personal interests overwhelming communal or national values. In contrast, India’s tradition, he argued, integrates faith, knowledge and action—elements which have enabled the country to progress while holding together diverse identities.
At the gathering, he said cultural values and spiritual unity, reflected in respect for rivers, cows, trees, and nature, contribute to India’s solidarity. He compared this with international trends he perceived as increasingly fragmented by materialism or loss of moral and cultural moorings. He also observed that modern conflicts arise when knowledge is divorced from action, or when action occurs without knowledge.
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