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Top RSS body to meet in Haryana on March 13
The meeting, which is chaired by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, will have the top leadership in attendance, and the heads of its 40 plus affiliates
The top decision making body of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha, will meet for three days starting March 13 in Haryana’s Samalkha, said people aware of the details.
The meeting, which is chaired by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, will have the top leadership in attendance, and the heads of its 40 plus affiliates.
Bharatiya Janata Party chief Nitin Nabin, who took over in January, will make his first presentation at the meeting with the Sangh leaders.
The apex body of the Sangh, is expected to deliberate on issues related to its ideological concerns including the issue of identifying and deporting undocumented immigrants. The Sangh has for long advocated stringent measures to check illegal immigration that it claims has led to demographic changes in the border areas.
A senior functionary of the Sangh said the organisation will be taking stock of the year-long activities planned at the previous year’s meeting and also review the work that was mapped as part of the ongoing centenary celebrations.
“The meeting will begin on March 13 and conclude on the 15th, there will be reviews of the work done by the offshoots and we will pass resolutions of issues of relevance,” said the functionary.
Although the Sangh distances itself from electoral politics, its cadre is involved in campaigning for the BJP and expected to help shape the party’s narrative in the upcoming set of assembly polls in five regions.
The Sangh’s focus on demographic challenges will be a key theme of the election campaign in Assam and West Bengal, while in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, the Sangh has been underlining the issue of allowing the community to decide administration and control of Hindu temples.
In Kerala, the Sangh has backed a contentious bar on women of a certain age group from the Sabarimala shrine, while in Tamil Nadu, it held rallies in favour of Hindu devotees to offer prayers at the Thirupparankundram hill near Madurai.
The other issues likely to draw attention at the meeting include the ongoing push for “decolonising education” and revival of ancient Indian techniques for farming and agriculture.
“The government has made it clear that FTAs will not be allowed at the cost of our farmers. But at the same time, there is a need to push for more resilient crops, better means of farming and irrigation that cut out the need for harsh chemicals, and westernised techniques. There is budgetary provision for green agriculture, but the campaign needs more effort to take off on the ground…we will raise this issue,” said a functionary of the Bharatiya Kisan Sangh, an RSS offshoot that works with farmers.
To a question on whether the Sangh will reiterate its demand for a national population policy, the functionary quoted above said it continued to rank high on the agenda.
Earlier this month, the RSS chief reiterated that Hindu families should have at least three children to ensure that demographic decline doesn’t weaken the community in the future.
