Yet, it is a phenomenon which was waiting to happen. Once sectarianism becomes the cornerstone of a group of parties, their unity cannot but be fragile. The RSS and the two Senas were together as long as Muslims were their enemies, especially during the Ramjanmabhoomi movement. This camaraderie of hatred even brought the saffron camp to power in Maharashtra in 1995 and at the Centre for a brief period in 1996 and then for six years in 1998.

But the problem with fomenting hate is that it cannot be sustained for long in a vacuum. Those who nurse it have to vent their anger against a chosen victim from time to time. If the Shiv Sena is aware of this difficulty, the reason is that it has had to act within a limited sphere, mainly Maharashtra, unlike the RSS and its political wing, the BJP, which have a wider base. So, the Shiv Sena has been changing its targets over the years from communist trade unions to south Indian idli-dosa outlets to Muslims while its offshoot, the MNS, has been concentrating its ire mainly on Bihari taxi-drivers and vegetable vendors.

That a fascistic mindset is behind this brand of politics is obvious. Its root is the drumming up of a paranoia based on the propaganda that the outsiders were not only depriving the locals - in this case, the Marathi manoos - of livelihood, but also undermining their culture by speaking in Hindi and refusing to learn the local language. Identical arguments were used to foment animosity against the Muslims with the additional accusation of the latter being pro-Pakistani as well.

But they were also accused of receiving preferential treatment under the Constitution and breeding at a rate which would reduce the Hindus to a minority in their own country, just as the Marathi manoos was beginning to fear that Mumbai was ceasing to remain their city. There are other similarities, too, between the RSS-BJP's anti-Muslim stance and the anti-outsider campaign of the sainiks, which was started by the MNS by opposing the holding of the Chhat puja by the Biharis just as the Shiv Sena had railed against the blocking of roads on Fridays by the namazis.

If only the Muslims had continued to remain as the foremost of the common enemies of the saffron camp, the unity of the RSS, the BJP and the Shiv Sena could be guaranteed. The trouble began, however, with the split in the Shiv Sena following the refusal of Raj Thackeray to accept his uncle, Balasaheb Thackeray's decision to nominate his son, Uddhav, as his successor.

After setting up the MNS, Raj had to find a new adversary. Since the Muslims had become passé, the Biharis were his first choice because the collapse of their state as a result of 15 years of non-development under Lalu Yadav had forced them to seek employment elsewhere. Even Shiela Dikshit had complained about how the Biharis - also known as Harrys in Delhi - were overrunning the national capital.

There was a faint attempt by a saffron columnist to turn the attention of the MNS leader from the devotees of the Chhat puja to those who faced the west to say their prayers, but Raj did not seem interested. Instead, since street violence has characterized fascist movements from the time of Hitler's Germany, the inaugural activity of his new party was to set upon the hapless Harrys in Mumbai. In doing so, he may have stolen a march over his uncle by robbing him of an issue with potential for violence. But neither uncle nor nephew may have anticipated the curious twist which the intervention of the RSS on the side of the Biharis will impart to the saffron agenda.

For the RSS, there was no alternative. It is aware that since the BJP's main base is in north India, its seeming helplessness in the face of the attacks on Biharis will irretrievably erode its influence. In India, the loss of Aryavarta is like a death-knell for a party. Hence, its sudden realisation that India belongs to all, including presumably the Muslims.

However, the damage to the Hindutva cause by this confrontation may prove to be irreparable. The reason is that even before the latest rumpus, the Shiv Sena and the BJP were drifting apart. The former, for instance, chose to support Pratibha Patil for the President's post instead of the NDA's Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, the veteran BJP leader. Bal Thackeray had also expressed his preference for Sharad Pawar as the Prime Minister in lieu of the NDA's L.K. Advani.

Now, the latest conflict carries the danger of taking an ugly turn if the RSS keeps its promise to “protect” the north Indians in the streets of Mumbai. The rath yatra of 1990, which had inaugurated the Hindutva movement, will reach a dead end if the kar sevaks take on the sainiks. (IPA Service)