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Awaaz - South Asia Watch Ltd is not responsible for the content or accuracy of the reports below.

Islamabad | March 13, 2004 3:12:09 PM IST. Millions of pounds collected in funds from charity outfits in the UK which were meant for victims of Gujarat carnage in 2002, were actually diverted to Sangh organisations in India which, in turn, spent the money on communal hate campaigns, an expensive report published from London has revealed.

According to a report in The News, the 80-page report titled - "In Bad Faith? British Charity and Hindu Extremism" - was recently released in the House of Lords. It is published by Awaaz - South Asia Watch Limited, (ASAW), London.

The report assumes significance especially in the wake of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) seeking Muslim votes ahead of the ensuing general elections in India.

The paper further said that ASAW has urged the UK Charity Commission to cancel the charitable status of Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh-UK (HSS-UK), VHP-UK, and Kalyan Ashram Trust-UK (KAT-UK), all part of the Sangh Parivar, and act against their trustees for keeping unsuspecting British donors in the dark about their affiliations and funding of extremist RSS organisations. "Most striking of all was the behaviour of these organisations in the wake of the Gujarat carnage which left 2000 dead and over two lakh displaced and languishing in refugee camps," the report said.

"This report details the depth of the connection between SIUK and the RSS, and the extent to which RSS fronts in India are dependent on overseas funding. One key finding is of SIUK making smaller donations to legitimate British causes to gain respectability here, while sending the bulk of its funds to RSS fronts in India," the paper quoted ASAW spokesman Chetan Bhatt as saying. (ANI)

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ISLAMABAD: An 80-page report reveals that millions of pounds collected in funds from charity outfits in the UK meant for victims of Gujarat carnage in 2002, were diverted to Sang organisations in India, which spent it on communal hate campaigns.

"In Bad Faith? British Charity and Hindu Extremism," has just been published by Awaaz — South Asia Watch Limited, (ASAW) London and was released in the House of Lords. It goes to the credit of the Indian media that it has published this report at a time when the BJP is already campaigning for general elections and reaching out to Muslim voters.

ASAW has urged the UK Charity Commission to revoke the charitable status of Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh-UK (HSS-UK), VHP-UK, and Kalyan Ashram Trust-UK (KAT-UK), all part of the Sangh Parivar, and act against their trustees for keeping unsuspecting British donors in the dark about their affiliations and funding of extremist RSS organisations.

After 9/11, India has seen a high jump in donations coming in from overseas especially the United States and the United Kingdom. It is another matter that those sending funds are educated but feel that they need to reach out and Hindutva is something they strongly identify with.

The ASAW is self-explanatory when it says in the report: "Most striking of all was the behaviour of these organisations in the wake of the Gujarat carnage which left 2,000 dead and over 2,00,000 displaced and languishing in refugee camps.

The response of the SIUK, the HSS, the VHP, the Nations Hindu Students Forum and every other UK Hindutva group to appeals for humanitarian relief was silence. This was despite considerable coverage of the carnage in the UK media and desperate appeals by secular Gujarat NGOs. This is not surprising: the majority of the victims were Indian citizens who were Muslims."

According to Chetan Bhatt, a reader in sociology at London’s Goldsmiths College and ASAW spokesman, "This report details the depth of the connection between SIUK and the RSS, and the extent to which RSS fronts in India are dependent on overseas funding. One key finding is of SIUK making smaller donations to legitimate British causes to gain respectability here, while sending the bulk of its funds to RSS fronts in India."

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YET another citizens' report, titled In Bad Faith? British Charity and Hindu Extremism, by a citizen's group based in UK documents the sources and the fraudulent means whereby RSS receives foreign funds from the British public. One may remember that last year a report was released at the initiative of US based secular groups, which documented the sources and manner whereby RSS received funds collected for them by 'charity' organisations in the US.

This new report about the sources of RSS funds from UK is by AWAAZ (South Asia Watch), a non-partisan, secular network with no religious affiliation or any affiliation to any British or Indian political party. It was recently launched at the British House of Lords. We give below the summary which conclusively demonstrates that organisations directly linked with the RSS have received millions of pounds raised from the British public.

APPROPRIATING OVERSEAS FUNDS

These funds were collected by a Leicester-based registered charity organisation called the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS) and its fundraising arm, the Sewa International. It runs about 70 weekly physical and ideological training cells in the UK. The HSS is modelled on the RSS, actively promotes RSS ideology and shares the RSS aim of turning India into an exclusive 'Hindu nation'. The RSS in India considers the HSS to be its UK branch. Sewa International is not a registered charity. It uses the charity registration number of the HSS to raise funds from the British public.The Vishwa Hindu Parishad UK and the Kalyan Ashram Trust UK, both registered charities, are also branches of the RSS family operating in the UK. The full report details numerous, extensive, deep and active connections between the HSS and the RSS --- connections which were not made known to donors and the British public who gave funds in good faith for Indian humanitarian causes.

According to the report, around £2 million raised from the British public on grounds of the Gujarat earthquake alone went to fund the expansion of sangh parivar organisations in India. The overwhelming bulk of funds raised by Sewa International UK from the British public for Orissa Cyclone relief also went to RSS fronts. They were used for building sectarian sangh parivar schools, even though the British public was never informed of this intention, and for building the RSS networks all over the country. The organisations funded include not merely those ideologically inclined towards Hindutva, but also groups directly involved in large-scale violence and the promotion of hatred.

Both the Gujarat earthquake (2001) and the Orissa cyclone (1999) demonstrate a pattern in which a natural, human tragedy is used to enable the dramatic expansion of RSS institutions through the use of overseas funds.

EXPLOITING HUMAN TRAGEDY

All the £ 2 million raised from the British public by Sewa International for Gujarat earthquake reconstruction and rehabilitation from 2001 onwards was for a major RSS affiliate, Sewa Bharati. Sewa Bharati's reconstruction work was directly related to furthering the RSS's political agenda, including through the organization of RSS cells. A key pattern found was that Sewa International funded Sewa Bharati for rebuilding work, but it was the RSS that conducted ceremonies for the start of rebuilding work or handed over the completed village to residents. One rebuilt village (Chapredi) included an important dedication plaque glorifying the RSS, its founder and a key RSS affiliate. A Hindu temple topped with saffron flags was built in the village. No evidence was found of Sewa International funding the building of mosques or churches, though many of these were destroyed in the earthquake. The RSS supreme leader K S Sudarshan undertook the foundation stone laying ceremony for one village (Mithapasvaria). The new village was handed over to residents by senior RSS leaders. The RSS supreme leader K S Sudarshan undertook the opening ceremony for another village (Rapar) during which he urged residents to expand the RSS network in the area. Funds were raised for this village through a multicultural event in the UK. RSS physical and ideological training cells were started by Sewa Bharati during the rebuilding and rehabilitation period for another village (Badanpur).

A large proportion of the £260,000 raised by Sewa International for Orissa cyclone relief (1999) went to enable the expansion of major RSS affiliates. Funds were used for building RSS schools. The HSS said Orissa cyclone funds would be channelled through RSS volunteers and given to organisations which get their workforce from the RSS. Funds raised by Sewa International's 'education aid' wing are significant, running into hundreds of thousands of pounds. ?Each of the 'supported projects' for which Sewa International raises funds from the British public is an RSS project or is linked to the RSS, including the ekal vidyalyas run by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram, Sewa Bharati, Vidya Bharati and other RSS/VHP affiliates.

PUSHING HINDUTVA AGENDA

Sewa International and the Kalyan Ashram Trust UK (a registered charity) raise funds for the RSS arm, Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram (VKA), which has been responsible for considerable violence and hatred against Christian and Muslim groups, including during the Gujarat carnage in 2002. Allegations of violence against Christians by Sewa Bharati in Madhya Pradesh continue. Some Gujarat earthquake appeal funds collected by Sewa International from the British public were for the RSS-allied Lok Kalyan Samiti in Chanasma village, which has been implicated in the violent 'cleansing' of all Muslims from the village and the illegal occupation of premises and land previously under the charge of the statutory Muslim waqf board. ?Some Gujarat earthquake appeal funds collected by Sewa International from the British public were for the RSS's Border Jankalyan Samiti in Gujarat. The Jan Kalyan Samiti's Maharashtra branch was responsible for attacks on Christian organisations.

Needless to say, there are serious allegations that the RSS discriminated against Muslims and dalits in earthquake relief, and that the RSS and its allies attacked and intimidated secular NGOs undertaking relief work. Earthquake relief work by RSS allies was accompanied by violence and hatred against Christians. The RSS itself, in its response to the report, is able to speak of building 13 houses for Muslims when (as AWAAZ points out), "in 2002, the sangh parivar made 200,000 Muslims lose their homes."

Over a three-year period, only a small amount of a few thousand pounds was shown in HSS UK literature to have been donated by Sewa International to other causes. Despite the extreme need in Gujarat to help the victims of the Gujarat carnage of 2002, the HSS or the VHP UK, which lay claim to be non sectarian and humanitarian, did not launch any humanitarian appeal for the 2,000 people killed, mostly Muslims, and over 200,000 citizens of India who got displaced.

Based on its findings AWAAZ recommends that the charitable status of HSS and other associated charities should be withdrawn and public sector funding and political patronage of these organisations should end, and that politicians, public and voluntary sector organisations, religious and community groups publicly dissociate from the HSS, the VHP UK and their allied organizations. It also proposes to initiate an enquiry by the British Parliament into these concerns.

The report is based on site visits to Gujarat villages in September 2003, interviews in Gujarat from March-May 2003, interviews in the UK, US and other parts of India during 2003, and an analysis of papers and electronic documents, mostly from Hindutva organisations. It is published by Awaaz - South Asia Watch Ltd, London, 2004, ISBN 0 9547174 0 6. The full report is available on www.awaazsaw.org

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The second anniversary of the Gujarat riots has been marked in the UK by the publication of a report that accuses "saffron" charities of misusing donations from the British public for promoting extremist organisations in India.

The report, titled In Bad Faith ? British Charity and Hindu Extremism, is the work of Awaaz - South Asia Watch, a secular human rights group based in the London suburb of Southall, which has one of the largest Asian communities in the UK. It accuses the UK-based Sewa International of sending 2-million pounds raised for earthquake relief in Gujarat to its Indian counterpart, Sewa Bharati, which gave the money to organisations linked with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

These organisations, says the report, are involved or implicated in serious violence or hate politics in India, and much of the money was spent on schools that promote hatred and fanaticism. Awaaz adds: "Most British donors would be horrified if they knew the nature, history and ideas of the RSS. Individuals raised funds and donated in good faith to Sewa International's Gujarat earthquake appeals, but would not have done so had they known that the organisation raising the money was closely linked to the Fascist-inspired and secretive Indian RSS."

Sewa International is not itself a registered charity, but it is the fund-raising arm of the UK branch of the RSS, the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS), which is registered. The Charity Commission, which regulates the granting of charitable status, has confirmed that the HSS has been under investigation because of its connection with the RSS, which was previously proscribed by the Indian government. Awaaz has called for charitable status to be withdrawn from the HSS and two linked organisations, The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) UK and the Kalyan Ashram Trust.

Awaaz spokesman Suresh Grover declared: "Sewa International has tried to dupe politicians. donors and the general public. Its main purpose is to fund, expand and glorify hate-driven RSS organisations, several of which have been at the forefront of large scale violence, pogroms or hate campaigns in India. Its claim to be a non-sectarian, non-political, non-religious humanitarian charity is a sham."

Sewa International has denied the report's allegatiions. It says it has never tried to hide its links with the Sangh Parivar nor to fool the public. President Shantilal Mistry is quoted as saying: "The entire sum collected for earthquake relief went towards charitable purposes and not a penny was spent on any hate campaign. (ANI)

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LONDON: Money raised in Britain to help earthquake victims in India is going instead into the coffers of a conservative Hindu group, a British-based South Asian human rights group said on Thursday.

Awaaz-South Asia Watch said in a report that Sewa International had raised two million pounds (3.7 million dollars) after the Gujarat earthquake two years ago.

But it said Sewa International did not disclose the fact that it was the fundraising arm of a Leicester-based conservative Hindu group, the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS), or reveal its links with India’s right-wing Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which regards the HSS as its British offshoot.

"All two million pounds raised from the British public by Sewa International for Gujarat earthquake reconstruction and rehabilitation from 2001 was for a major RSS affiliate, Sewa Bharati," the report said. "Sewa Bharati is dedicated to creating an exclusive Hindu nation," it said. "Sewa Bharatis reconstruction work was directly related to furthering the RSSs political agenda, including through the organisation of RSS cells," the report added.

It cited the case of one earthquake-stricken Gujarati village, Chapredi, where a Hindu temple was reconstructed with a plaque ‘glorifying the RSS’ while mosques and churches that had been destroyed were apparently not rebuilt.

Awaaz-South Asia Watch urged the British authorities to withdraw charity status from HSS and associated charities. "Public sector funding and political patronage of these organisations should end," it insisted.

Some 25,000 people were killed when Gujarat was hit by a massive earthquake in January 2001. The following year, some 2,000 died (mostly Muslims) when the state was plunged into by India’s worst communal violence between Hindus and Muslims in a decade.

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Money raised in Britain to help earthquake victims in India is going instead into the coffers of a right-wing Hindu group, a British-based South Asian human rights group alleged Thursday.

Awaaz-South Asia Watch said in a report that Sewa International had raised two million pounds (2.9 million euros, 3.7 million dollars) after the Gujarat earthquake two years ago.

But it said Sewa International had not disclosed the fact that it was the fundraising arm of a Leicester-based conservative Hindu group, the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS).

Nor was it made clear that HSS was the British offshoot of India's right-wing Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), it said.

"All two million pounds raised from the British public by Sewa International for Gujarat earthquake reconstruction and rehabilitation from 2001 was for a major RSS affilate, Sewa Bharati," the report said.

"Sewa Bharati is dedicated to creating an exclusive Hindu nation," it added.

"Sewa Bharati's reconstruction work was directly related to furthering the RSS's political agenda, including through the organization of RSS cells."

It cited the case of one earthquake-stricken Gujarati village, Chapredi, where a Hindu temple was reconstructed with a plaque "glorifying the RSS" while mosques and churches that had been destroyed were apparently not rebuilt.

Awaaz-South Asia Watch urged the British authorities to withdraw charity status from HSS and associated charities.

"Public sector funding and political patronage of these organizations should end," it insisted.

Some 25,000 people were killed when Gujarat was hit by a massive earthquake in January 2001. The following year, some 2,000 died when the state was plunged into by India's worst communal violence between Hindus and Muslims in a decade.

A spokesman for Awaaz-South Asia Watch told AFP that the two million pounds had been raised "across the board, from large corporations to schools, from shopkeepers to South Asian organization and so forth".

Awaaz-South Asia Watch describes itself as "a secular coalition based in the United Kingdom which monitors and combats the promotion of religious hatred and fascism in the UK and South Asia".

Its report -- which it said was based on research inside Gujarat -- was posted on its Internet site (www.awaazsaw.org) as it was made public at the House of Lords in London.

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A British charity has come under fresh attack for fuelling hate in India.

A report launched at the House of Lords has accused Sewa International, based in Leicester, of sending £2 million raised for Gujarat earthquake victims to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

The report, prepared by Awaaz - South Asia Watch Ltd, a London-based network, and entitled 'In Bad Faith? British Charity and Hindu Extremism', says the cash was filtered through Sewa International's Indian counterpart Sewa Bharati.

Awaaz, made up of South Asian academics, lawyers and human rights campaigners, has claimed that Sewa Bharati is a front for the RSS.

"Sewa International has tried to dupe politicians, donors and the general public. Its main purpose is to fund, expand and glorify hate-driven RSS organisations, several of which have been at the forefront of large-scale violence, pogroms or hate campaigns in India. Its claim to be a non-sectarian, non-political, non-religious humanitarian charity is a sham," says Awaaz spokesperson Suresh Grover.

The Charity Commission is now investigating Sewa International, which is registered under the name Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh.

Former Sewa patron Labour Lord Adam Patel said in a statement, "Sewa International has cheated me and cheated the residents of the UK.

"The organisation has been raising funds in the name of charity and giving them to extremist organisations that preach hatred against Muslims and Christians.

"The report demonstrates that Sewa International sent £2 million raised in the wake of the devastating earthquake in Gujaratin 2001, to its Indian counterpart Sewa Bharati.

"This organisation is a front to the RSS, which has been involved in large-scale violence or hate politics in India.

"Thousands of Indians have died over the past fifteen years as a result of religiously-motivated violence.

"Much of the money sent by Sewa International was spent on schools that promote hatred and fanaticism."

The British parliament is set to discuss the report.

Jeremy Corbyn, MP, and vice-chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights, said, "I am sure we will all be asking questions about this in the Lords and Commons.

"No British organisation should be allowed in the name of charity to support extremists who have perpetrated this terrible violence."

In response to the allegations a spokesman for Sewa said, "Sewa believes in multiculturalism and harmonious community relations.

"Its members play an important part in the community. It promotes Hindu values, ideals and way of life.

"Sewa utilised the funds in building villages, schools and mobile clinics through the NGO Sewa Bharati, Gujarat, which was one of the selected NGOs allowed to work for rehabilitation of the victims.

"Sewa has helped people from all faith traditions and have sent aid to Kosovo, Turkey and Somalia."

The Awaaz spokesman responded, "Sewa International does not represent Hindu communities or Hinduism. They represent a political cult whose founders and early leaders were admirers of Mussolini and Hitler."

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London: "Massive donations" raised by "activists of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)" in Britain for earthquake relief in Gujarat were sent to certain "extremist groups" involved or directly implicated in large-scale violence in the State two years back, a London-based campaign group alleged today (Feb 26, 2004).

"Activists of the RSS have been raising funds in the name of charity for natural disasters like earthquakes, and giving them to extremist organisations that preach hatred against Muslims and Christians," Awaaz - South Asia Watch Ltd - claimed in a report entitled "In Bad Faith? British Charity and Hindu Extremism".

The report was released in the corridors of the House of Lords on the eve of the second anniversary of the Godhra carnage.

It alleged that "Sewa International" sent million Pounds to its Indian counterpart Sewa Bharati, a front of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), for relief of earthquake victims.

"Money from the UK was given to RSS front organisations that are involved or implicated in serious violence or hate politics in India. Much of the money was spent on schools that promote hatred and fanaticism," the report said, according to a press release issued by Awaaz.

Asked to comment on the report, a spokesman of Sewa International said it would be inappropriate to respond to it while the allegation was being investigated by the British Government body that regulates charities.

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NEW DELHI, India : Feb 27 (PNS) - Massive donations by British Public for the relief fund to Gujarat have been sent to Hindu extremist groups, directly implicated in a large-scale campaign of violence and anti-minority hatred in India.

A report, released on the second anniversary of the post-Godhra riots in Gujarat reveals the unsavoury links between prominent fundraising organizations in the UK and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), an extremist outfit of BJP.

The report "In Bad Faith: British Charity and Hindu Extremism," to be released at the House of Lords on Thursday, according to the leading Indian daily "The Asian Age," uses site visits, to Gujarat, interviews and commentary and photographic evidence to prove that under the cloak of humanitarian charity following the Gujarat earthquake, massive donations from the British public were sent to Hindu extremist groups directly implicated in large-scale campaign of violence and hatred in India.

According to the report, the money from the UK was also given to other Sangh Parivar outfits like Vanvasi Kalyan. Sewa International, the fundraising arm of the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh UK, sent Pound two million to its Indian counterpart Sewa Bharati, a front for the RSS, as part of its quake relief fund to Gujarat.

Nearly a quarter of those funds was spent on RSS schools that promote fanaticism and large sums went to RSS front organizations, said Chetan Bhatt of Awaaz, the UK-based organization behind this report. The activities of the HSS and Sewa International have been under investigations since 2000 when UK's Charity Commission launched an inquiry into charity's links with proscribed organizations. The Commission staff sought Indian visas last year to ascertain how the charitable funds collected for Gujarat relief had been applied, but the officials were denied entry by the Indian government, said the Daily.

"The main aim of our inquiry has been to confirm that the charitable funds raised by HSS have been applied properly. In the course of investigation, we have looked at the charity's connection with the international organization RSS, which was previously proscribed by the Indian government. We have received some documentary evidence. However, we are now waiting for further information from the trustees," added the daily quoting a spokesperson from the Charity Commission.

The funds were collected by the Leicester-based registered charity HSS, and its fund-raising arm Sewa International, the report said adding, the HSS and Sewa International are UK branches of the RSS and the main purpose of their fund-raising is to channel money to RSS fronts in India.

This new report, Awwaz hoped will further the Commission’s inquiry and eventually lead to revoking HSS’charity status and put an end to corporate funding and political patronage for the group. The HSS, registered charity, is a branch of the Indian RSS and is modeled on the RSS, actively promotes RSS ideology and shares the RSS’ aim of turning India into an exclusive Hindu nation.

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad UK and the Kalyan Ashram Trust UK, also registered charities, are other branches of the RSS family operating in tUK, stated the report. " Most British donors would be horrified if they knew the nature, history and ideas of the RSS. British individuals raised funds and donated in good faith to Sewa International's Gujarat Earthquake appeal, but would not have done so had they known that the organizations raising the money, were closely linked to the fascist- inspired and extremist RSS”, Awaaz added. “Sewa International has tried to dupe politicians, donors and the general public. Its main purpose is to fund, expand and glorify hate-driven RSS organizations, several of which have been at the forefront of large-scale violence, pogroms, or hate campaigns in India.

"It's claim to be a non-sectarian, non-political, non-religious humanitarian charity is a shame", Awaaz Spokesman Suresh Grover has been quoted as saying.

NEW DELHI, FEB. 27 . The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh today rejected all allegations of misuse of about £2 million (about Rs. 15 crores) it had collected in Britain for relief work in Gujarat following the devastating earthquake in Bhuj three years ago.

Rejecting as "false and wild" the report of Awaaz: South Asia Watch, which was recently released in Britain, and reported in the Indian press, the RSS spokesperson, Ram Madhav, said that in fact the Sewa International, an RSS affiliate, had used the money to reconstruct two villages in quake-hit Saurashtra. Four other villages were re-built with some of the money coming from the Sewa International and eight others with funds from Sewa Bharati and contributions other than the money collected abroad.

Mr. Madhav said the Awaaz report was "scandalous" and the RSS could consider taking legal action. "It seems to be part of a sinister conspiracy," he said, questioning the locus standi of Awaaz. The Sewa Bharati was a registered organisation in several States, including Gujarat. "We get funds from abroad as we are registered with the Fund Contributions Regulatory Act," which controlled donations from abroad.

Conceding that the RSS had many a time protested against foreign funding of educational institutions run by Christian missionaries, Mr. Madhav said "it was because we protested against misuse of those funds for religious conversion related activities." He denied that Sewa Bharati or Sewa International funds had been used to promote sectarian violence in tribal areas where these organisations had opened schools.

Mr. Madhav strongly criticised a U.S. State Department report on human rights which had described Indian democracy as "flawed" and alleged that the Government run by the BJP was not providing security and justice to Muslims and Christians. "We strongly condemn this tendency of the U.S. to behave like a globo-cop (global policeman) and we treat this as direct interference in the internal matters of India."