Policy Analyst Highlights Potential Damage from RSS Boycott in US, Canada, UK

A senior fellow at the Hudson Institute has warned that coordinated efforts by political leaders and advocacy groups across the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom to boycott the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) could erode U.S. strategic interests and weaken the push for stronger US‑India ties. In his Wall Street Journal commentary, Bill Drakesell cited the RSS’s massive grassroots presence – roughly 83,000 regular local meetings and an estimated five million volunteer participants – as evidence of the organization’s resilience.

The RSS serves as the central hub of a wide‑ranging Hindu nationalist network, supporting around 2,500 affiliated organisations that include religious groups, a national labour union and a large private‑school system. Its activities span physical training, cultural performances, sports and educational outreach on Hindu civilisation.

Drakesell referenced recent attempts to curb RSS influence: New York Mayor Eric Adams labelled the RSS’s ideology as “divisive,” the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom sought to cancel Mohan Bhagwat’s visa, and Canadian and British officials faced petitions urging them to designate the RSS as a terrorist organization. He argued that such isolation tactics risk damaging U.S. diplomatic standing, especially as India’s economic growth and strategic importance in the Indo‑Pacific theatre become increasingly central to American foreign policy.

The analyst concluded that shutting out a large, complex civil‑society entity like the RSS will not diminish its impact; instead, it may amplify the voices of its most hard‑line elements and foreclose avenues for constructive dialogue.