WHEN Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay began reporting on the RSS-BJP-VHP combine in the 1980s, it was not a popular beat amongst reporters. Living in a flat in Delhi’s Munirka, he would walk to the nearest Sankat Mochan temple where members of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) often gathered for a puri-bhaji breakfast. Mukhopadhyay’s impeccable Hindi — he hails from Western UP – his kurta-pyjama outfit and unobtrusive manner, put the VHP rank and file at ease. They spoke frankly to him. He says he was intrigued by them.
Since then. . .
