In 1899, deep within the narrow lanes of Tilbhandeshwar, a sixteen-year-old schoolboy named Vinayak Damodar (Veer) Savarkar was quietly rewriting the script of India’s freedom struggle. While the Indian National Congress (INC) still pursued petitions and reform, Savarkar envisioned something far more daring — a secret society devoted to armed revolution.
That vision took shape as the Rashtrabhakta Samuha — the “Society of Patriots” (also called the “Devoted Patriots Organization”) — India’s first modern, covert revolutionary group aimed squarely at ending British rule.
Seeds of a Revolutionary Idea
Savarkar’s young mind was a crucible of influences:
- The nationalist firebrand Bal Gangadhar Tilak
- The fearless journalism of Shivram Mahadev (S.M.) Paranjpe (writing for the newspaper Kal)
- And Thomas Frost’s accounts of European secret societies
With close friends Trimbak Mhaskar and Raoji Krishna Paage, Savarkar built the Samuha on the principles of secrecy, symbolism, and discipline. Members swore oaths of loyalty, used coded symbols, and disguised their activities in casual conversation with the cryptic acronym “Ram Hari.”
Their mission was bold and unambiguous — awaken patriotic passion, recruit the most committed youth, and train them for a future of militant struggle that would one day secure India’s complete independence.
A Two-Tier Strategy
Savarkar understood that a purely underground movement could not grow in isolation. To attract and test new recruits, he proposed a dual-structure strategy:
- Inner Circle: The secretive Rashtrabhakta Samuha, where only the most loyal patriots were admitted.
- Public Front: On January 1, 1900, they launched Mitra Mela, a cultural and social platform organizing public festivals, patriotic events, and community gatherings. From these circles, Savarkar would quietly handpick young men ready to enter the Samuha.
From Prototype to Legacy
Although short-lived, the Rashtrabhakta Samuha was an ideological and organizational prototype for later revolutionary movements. By 1904, Mitra Mela evolved into the Abhinav Bharat Society, which played a decisive role in India’s militant nationalist movement and inspired revolutionaries far beyond Maharashtra.
The Samuha’s blend of cultural nationalism, tight-knit secrecy, and uncompromising militant idealism became hallmarks of Savarkar’s lifelong strategy.
Final Thoughts: Why It Matters Today
The Rashtrabhakta Samuha is rarely remembered in mainstream accounts of the freedom struggle, yet it stands as a foundational chapter in India’s revolutionary awakening. It reminds us that the road to independence was not only paved by seasoned leaders in political halls, but also by a teenager’s conviction that freedom could not be begged for — it had to be fought for.
Do you think Savarkar’s focus on secrecy and armed struggle was the right approach at that time? How might India’s freedom movement have changed if Rashtrabhakta Samuha had grown larger before being replaced by Abhinav Bharat? Why do you think Rashtrabhakta Samuha is so little known compared to Abhinav Bharat? Should early revolutionary groups like Rashtrabhakta Samuha be given more attention in history textbooks? Share your insights in the comments below!
Sources:
KEER, Dhananjay. 1988. Veer Savarkar. Third Edition. (Second Edition: 1966). Popular Prakashan: Bombay (Mumbai).
PINCINCE, John. 2007. On the Verge of Hindutva: V.D. Savarkar, Revolutionary, Convict, Ideologue, c. 1905–1924. A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Division of the University of Hawai‘i (at Mānoa) in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History.
SAMPATH, Vikram. 2019. Savarkar (Part 1). Echoes from a forgotten past. 1883-1924. Penguin Random House India: Gurgaon.
SAVARKAR, Vinayak Damodar. 1993. Inside the enemy camp. Veer Savarkar Prakashan: Mumbai.
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