Rakhshanda Mehtab
A concerning transformation is underway within the diaspora, one that goes far beyond cultural pride and enters the realm of organised political extremism. The evidence suggests that under the Bharatiya Janata Party government led by Narendra Modi, the ideology of Hindutva has not only captured Indian state institutions but is now being systematically exported abroad, particularly to the United States.
The Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS), registered back in 1989, long before Modi’s rise, serves as the primary vehicle for this influence. While officially registered as a harmless cultural non-profit, it has matured into a well-oiled network that functions as the direct operational arm of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). It coordinates smoothly with the Indian government, its diplomatic missions, and BJP-linked influence circles.
When you pull back the curtain on the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS), its “cultural group” facade quickly falls apart to reveal a vast and interconnected web of organisations. This network includes groups like the Overseas Friends of BJP (OFBJP), the Hindu American Foundation (HAF), the Coalition of Hindus of North America (COHNA), the Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America (VHPA), the Hindu Students Council (HSC), and charities such as Sewa International, Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation, India Development & Relief Fund (IDRF), and the Hindu Education Foundation (HEF).
While these groups present themselves as community advocates or charities, they form a coordinated apparatus of 5,000-7,000 active members working to reshape U.S. public opinion, influence policy, and cultivate an ideological allegiance to Hindutva that ultimately serves the political interests of the BJP in India. Far from being a benign community group, the HSS and its affiliates constitute a political project disguised in cultural clothing.
Their influence is not passive. These networks actively manipulate the U.S. political and legislative systems, functioning as instruments of foreign influence. They intervene directly to shield India from human rights scrutiny and to silence critics. We’ve seen them promote bills like Georgia’s SB 375, which sought to criminalise legitimate criticism of Hindutva ideology under the vague and dangerous label of “Hinduphobia.” At the same time, they worked to prevent California’s anti-caste discrimination bill from passing, a move aimed squarely at protecting Dalits and other marginalised groups. They even ensured the veto of a bill designed to counter transnational repression, a clear win for foreign governments, including India, that wish to operate without oversight.
The campaign for influence doesn’t stop at politics; it extends directly into American classrooms. HSS and its affiliates are deeply invested in a long-game effort to shape how schools and universities teach South Asian history, religion, and caste. They actively lobby school boards and push for textbook revisions that serve their ideological goals, erasing references to caste oppression and Hindu extremist violence while promoting Islamophobic narratives that frame Muslims as historical aggressors. This rewriting of history aligns neatly with the Hindutva worldview. Simultaneously, they create a climate of intimidation for academics. Scholars who dare to research or critique Hindutva, as seen with the coordinated attacks on the 2021 Dismantling Global Hindutva Conference, face systematic harassment and vilification designed to silence any critical inquiry.
This indoctrination starts early. Student organisations like the Hindu Students Council and Hindu YUVA are cultivating the next generation of ideological cadres on American campuses. Many of these young members receive training in RSS camps in India, creating a pipeline of diaspora activists whose loyalty lies not with the pluralistic values of their new home but with the Modi-era Hindutva politics of their ancestral one.
Perhaps most alarming is how they fund extremism under the cover of charity. Well-regarded charitable entities like Sewa International, IDRF and the Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation enjoy the credibility of U.S. charities, which means they operate with tax-exempt status and donor trust. These organisations have been investigated for diverting tax-exempt American donations to RSS-linked groups in India. These funds don’t just build community centres; investigations have traced them to organisations implicated in anti-Muslim pogroms, forced Hinduization programs for tribal communities, and propaganda schools that promote communal hatred. It’s a brutal bait-and-switch where dollars given for disaster relief can end up fueling the very forces that create discord.
When you step back and connect all the dots, a clear and disturbing picture emerges. This is not a random diaspora movement or a benign cultural network. It is a state-supported transnational project, using the United States as a funding base, a political lobbying arena, a narrative battlefield, and a recruitment zone. Its objective is stark: to normalise the idea of Hindu supremacy, suppress any discourse on minority rights, and reshape the world’s perception of India to align with a single, exclusionary ideology.
People often assume that extremism only spreads through militias or violent groups. But here, it’s moving through nonprofits, student clubs, think tanks, and “cultural” organisations, soft power with hard consequences. This makes it uniquely dangerous. It is easier to criticise a militia than a charity; it is easier to see a threat in a gun than in a textbook revision or a campus event. Yet the effect is the same: democratic values are manipulated, debates on minority rights become toxic, and an ideology that thrives on exclusion quietly settles into the very systems meant to protect diversity.
This is not about demonising Hinduism or diaspora communities. It is about recognising that an extremist political ideology is using the U.S. as a staging ground. If pluralistic societies do not wake up to this form of infiltration, not dramatic, not overtly violent, but deeply coordinated, they risk losing the very pluralism they claim to defend.
The writer is MS Research Scholar at IIUI, a freelance content writer and a columnist.
