Sangh's Unfinished Dream of “Banga”
There is something uniquely Indian about our political imagination. We can discuss inflation in the morning, nuclear war in the afternoon, and by evening somebody is redrawing the map of the subcontinent over tea and samosas. The latest fantasy drifting through nationalist drawing rooms is the grand slogan: “Ang, Kalinga, Banga.” It sounds less like a geopolitical doctrine and more like an ancient ayurvedic prescription. But do not underestimate the emotional power of old words in a civilization that remembers epics better than budget speeches. “Ang” is Bihar in its ancient costume. “Kalinga” is Odisha before modern spelling arrived. And “Banga,” of course, is Bengal — not merely the present-day West Bengal, but the entire cultural landmass stretching into Bangladesh. The slogan now circulates among enthusiastic supporters of the Bharatiya Janata Party and its ideological uncle, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, as proof that eastern India is finally returning to the nationalist fold....
