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By:

Uday Jogalekar

13 May 2026 at 3:25:14 pm

From Pracharak to Minister: My Memories of Dilipda

Long before he became a minister, Dilipda had already earned our respect through his simplicity, discipline, and warmth. In 2007, my job brought me to Kolkata. Once there, I began attending the local RSS shakha and gradually became involved in Sangh work. I first met Dilipda during a visit to a swayamsevak’s home. Coincidentally, that same year, he had been appointed to our division. As everyone introduced themselves, Dilipda casually asked me in Marathi, “How are you finding Bengal?” Hearing...

From Pracharak to Minister: My Memories of Dilipda

Long before he became a minister, Dilipda had already earned our respect through his simplicity, discipline, and warmth. In 2007, my job brought me to Kolkata. Once there, I began attending the local RSS shakha and gradually became involved in Sangh work. I first met Dilipda during a visit to a swayamsevak’s home. Coincidentally, that same year, he had been appointed to our division. As everyone introduced themselves, Dilipda casually asked me in Marathi, “How are you finding Bengal?” Hearing a Bengali pracharak — a full-time RSS worker devoted to organisational work — speak fluent Marathi came as a pleasant surprise to me. From that moment onwards, my interactions with Dilipda increased, and I gradually began to understand the many dimensions of his seemingly simple personality. Coming from Maharashtra, where Sangh work generally faced non-violent opposition, adapting to Bengal — where the opposition was often violent — was not easy. In that atmosphere, I learnt from Dilipda how to remain enthusiastic while also keeping fellow workers motivated and active. I often accompanied Dilipda during his visits to our area. He had a remarkable ability to blend effortlessly into any household, warmly enquire about every family member, and make everyone feel as though he were one of their own. Before being appointed to Kolkata, Dilipda had served as an RSS pracharak in the remote Andaman Islands from around 1999–2000 until 2007. Based in Port Blair, he worked under difficult conditions despite limited travel and communication facilities, diverse tribes speaking different languages, and a local mindset that often kept outsiders at a distance. He would often share positive experiences from his years in the Andamans but never once spoke about the hardships he endured. Despite working in such difficult conditions, he never mentioned his personal discomforts. This ability to remain free of complaints despite adversity is a hallmark of a pracharak, and Dilipda embodied it completely. He possessed the rare gift of finding positivity even in challenging situations. Excellent Cook In Bengal during 2007, Sangh work had not yet expanded to the scale it has reached today. At times, pracharaks had to cook their own meals, and this had made Dilipda an excellent cook. Whenever he returned to the city from his travels, our group would eagerly gather to enjoy his khichdi. Our area, Bidhannagar, was located in Salt Lake, a relatively prosperous locality. Adjacent to it were a few underprivileged settlements, and we would occasionally visit the nearby market. To reach the market from Salt Lake, one had to cross a wooden bridge, where the toll was 25 paise for pedestrians and one rupee for bicycles. Observing the difficulties faced by people in those settlements, Dilipda once suggested starting some sewa (service) activity there. That eventually led to the establishment of a homoeopathic clinic in the locality. While setting up the clinic, Dilipda effortlessly guided us through every stage of planning — what arrangements were needed, how the process should be structured, and what challenges might arise. It felt as though the entire plan was already mapped out in his mind. As the clinic became operational, we began noticing the educational difficulties faced by the local children. English, science, and mathematics were particularly challenging subjects for them, which eventually led to the start of a study centre. The idea of involving engineers from Salt Lake’s IT companies also came from Dilipda. Later, by bringing together IT professionals, an “IT Milan” initiative was started, and many of them eventually became swayamsevaks actively involved in Sangh work. Remarkable Ability At the time, the CPM government was in power in Bengal, and there were many obstacles to conducting shakha activities. Dilipda constantly guided us on overcoming these challenges. He had a remarkable ability to identify work that could bring meaningful change, plan it carefully, and execute it with determination and effectiveness. Whether it was service activities, daily shakha work, or handling sensitive cases related to “Love Jihad", Dilipda consistently displayed dedication, clarity of thought, a fighting spirit, and an unwavering readiness to work tirelessly toward the objective. What amazes me even today is that a pracharak like Dilipda — someone far ahead of us in age, experience, and accomplishments — would interact so casually and warmly with ordinary swayamsevaks like us, placing a hand on our shoulders and speaking as though he were a close friend. In 2009, I was transferred back to Mumbai, bringing my Kolkata chapter to an end. Later, in 2014, I learned that Dilipda had been given responsibility in the BJP. And now, in 2026, the BJP forming a government on its own strength speaks volumes about its contribution and leadership. Today, Dilipda has become a minister, and many titles and honours will naturally be associated with him. But to us, he will always remain simply "Dilipda". (The writer is an entrepreneur based in Kalwa, Thane.)

A Martyr to the Second Amendment

Charlie Kirk’s death by gunfire is unlikely to settle America’s endless quarrel over firearms.

Charlie Kirk built his career on the idea that guns were not a threat to American freedom but its guarantor. Ironically, he would die by one. Kirk was answering a question about mass shootings at Utah Valley University earlier this month when a bullet struck his neck.


Kirk, one of America’s fiercest defenders of gun rights, was just 31. Raised in suburban Chicago, he dropped out of college to co-found Turning Point USA at 18. In little more than a decade, the group grew into the largest conservative youth organisation in the country, a pipeline of young activists who often found their way into Donald Trump’s campaign and administration. Kirk was much more than just another conservative talker; he was an operator, organiser and recruiter for the Republicans. His podcast ‘The Charlie Kirk Show’ commanded millions of listeners. On social media he mixed denunciations of immigration and abortion with pandemic scepticism and climate-change conspiracy theories. Love him or loathe him, it was difficult to ignore him.


Trump relied on him to mobilise younger voters. It was Kirk who helped turn Arizona ‘red’ again and even boosted figures such as Vice-President J.D. Vance. Small wonder that when he was killed, Trump called it a “dark day.”


Yet even in mourning, a familiar script played out. Trump blamed left-wing rhetoric, not the gun as responsible for the activist’s death. Kirk himself had long mocked calls for gun restrictions. To him, the Second Amendment, which is the right to bear arms, ratified in 1791 was far more than a clause in the Constitution. It was liberty itself.


The amendment’s original purpose was to enable citizens to muster militias at a time when standing armies were mistrusted. Courts have since reinterpreted it to affirm personal gun ownership, most notably in the Supreme Court’s Heller decision of 2008. In practice, it has given cover to a uniquely American arsenal resulting in nearly 400 million firearms in civilian hands today, more than one per person.


The consequences are grim. Firearms now cause around 40,000 deaths each year, which amounts to a shocking 109 every day. They are the leading cause of death among children and teenagers, far eclipsing car accidents. By July this year nearly 19,000 people have died from gun violence and over 2,000 mass shootings had been recorded.


American schools and varsities have become familiar sites of carnage. Columbine in 1999, Sandy Hook in 2012, Parkland in 2018 have all shocked the nation (some enshrined in memorable documentaries) but have ultimately changed little.


While Australia, Canada and much of Europe, after tightening their gun laws, recorded sharp falls in shootings, America stands apart in this. America’s firearm death rate of 12.2 per 100,000 is several times higher than that of its peers. Yet, efforts to regulate guns remain stuck. The gun lobby, led by the National Rifle Association, continues to wield clout.


In fact, Congress hobbled research for decades with the 1996 Dickey Amendment barring federal agencies from studying gun violence as a public-health issue. Though partially reversed in 2019, its chilling effect still lingers. The violence from firearms has political echoes. The killings of John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr shook the world in the 1960s. More recently, Donald Trump himself survived an attempt on his life. Kirk’s assassination adds another name to the roll of America’s martyrs. But unlike presidents or civil-rights leaders, his significance lies in the paradox he embodied. He insisted that guns were safeguards, not dangers. His end suggests otherwise.


Still, it is unlikely to change minds because America’s gun debate is not a clash over evidence but of identity. For many conservatives, gun ownership is entwined with patriotism and distrust of government. For reformers, the daily toll of shootings is proof of systemic failure. Both sides have grown more entrenched. Each fresh tragedy becomes not a moment of consensus but another cudgel in the culture war.


Kirk’s death will be mourned by his followers and scorned by his detractors. But will it alter the trajectory of American politics? Almost certainly not. The gun that killed him was not merely a weapon but a symbol of the very freedoms he preached. His fate is cruelly symbolic. His death, like those of thousands each year, will be absorbed into the endless cycle of outrage, mourning and stalemate. In America, even irony seems powerless against the gun lobby.

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