Lucknow: Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat on Monday said the Sangh was all for connecting even with those who oppose it as it wishes to take everyone together in the task of nation-building.
He, however, said the Sangh would be cautious about ensuring that the critics and their criticism doesn’t harm it (the Sangh).
He also said “we stand for an inclusivity in the country” while urging intellectuals and others to join in nation-building.
“We want to take everyone along because the goal of nation-building is a common one. So, those who oppose us are welcome too. Yes, but we will surely ensure that the critics and their criticism doesn’t harm us,” Bhagwat said on the concluding day of his three-day visit of Awadh Prant at Saraswati Shishu Mandir in Nirala Nagar here.
The RSS chief or “sarsanghchalak’”, as he is referred to by the Sangh cadres, said this while interacting with professionals and intellectuals – something that he often does at the end of his visits.
“We don’t want to take credit for all that is good. We are not interested in history recognising RSS as ones who shaped the country. Rather, we would prefer that history records that a generation committed to the cause of nation-building arrived and ensured that the country became a ‘vishwa guru (world leader)’ by the sheer dint of their talent,” the RSS chief said.
{{/usCountry}}“We don’t want to take credit for all that is good. We are not interested in history recognising RSS as ones who shaped the country. Rather, we would prefer that history records that a generation committed to the cause of nation-building arrived and ensured that the country became a ‘vishwa guru (world leader)’ by the sheer dint of their talent,” the RSS chief said.
{{/usCountry}}An RSS pracharak, while decoding the essence of Bhagwat’s message, said that people with Sangh background were there in all parties.
“The Sangh doesn’t stop anyone from choosing their calling as it follows the credo of nation first. So there are people from diverse backgrounds, including across political parties who are connected to RSS,” this pracharak said while quoting the example of former President Pranab Mukherjee who, despite hailing from the Congress, attended an RSS event in Nagpur in 2018.
Throughout his three-day visit, top BJP leaders in the party and the government, including chief minister Yogi Adityanath, deputy CMs Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak, UP BJP chief Bhupendra Chaudhary, state general secretary (organisation) Dharampal Singh among various others called on the RSS chief, who is said to have directed the Sangh cadres to connect with Dalits and marginalised communities.
As if on cue, the BJP is also planning to launch a campaign to connect with Dalits and other marginalised communities, party leaders said. During his visit, the RSS chief set the agenda for the Sangh, directed cadres to step up campaign against ‘land jihad (the term coined by right wing groups to denote vacant lands occupied for mausoleums or graves)’, ‘love jihad (a VHP coinage directed at Muslim youth who fake identity to get Hindu women to enter into a relationship with them)’. The Sangh chief also asked the cadres to expand their reach in yet-unreached areas, especially across the countryside, Sangh cadres shared.