Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, during a press conference to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Sardar Patel and the 41st death anniversary of Indira Gandhi, supported the suggestion to ban the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
He was unambiguously clear and categorical, saying, “I want to say it openly that a ban should be imposed (on RSS).” This is for the first time in the recent past that some senior Congress functionary, and the party president at that, has clearly and openly suggested banning the RSS.
The RSS is said to be the world’s largest “organised NGO” of active volunteers. There are other voluntary organisations like the Red Cross with many times more members than the RSS, but the members are not active the way the RSS volunteers are. The RSS membership is estimated to be about 50 lakh, who assemble every day in morning and evening ‘shakhas’ (drills) where they perform physical activities and debate on various social and political issues.
While the Congress leaders have always been critical of the RSS, often accusing it of causing polarisation in the country, there has never been an open demand for banning it. Rahul Gandhi frequently criticises the RSS, and so do other leaders. But the demand for a ban has come for the first time. Gandhi has never demanded banning the RSS.
Interestingly, Kharge supported the suggestion of the ban in response to a question by a reporter. Whether the question was sponsored, as is often the case that such questions are made to be asked, or was impromptu, is not difficult to guess. The Congress is trying to build up its image as a “strictly secular” party opposed to the RSS. The press conference was being held while the electioneering is at its peak in Bihar, where the Muslim vote is the deciding factor. The Congress is in desperate search of the Muslim votes, and seeking a ban on the RSS would definitely appeal to the Muslim voters, whose stance towards the organisation is too well-known.
Kharge tried to build up a case against the RSS, extensively quoting the first Union Home Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, Sardar Patel, who had banned the RSS immediately in the aftermath of the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi. While there was no direct evidence that the assassin and his co-conspirators were members of the RSS, Patel built up a case that the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi was the result of the venomous atmosphere created by the RSS across the country in the aftermath of the partition. Kharge claimed that Patel even said that the RSS volunteers had celebrated Gandhi’s killing and distributed sweets.
Kharge also wanted to embarrass the BJP and the RSS by referring to its ban by Patel, as the two organisations are trying to appropriate Patel’s legacy and accusing the Congress of ignoring and disowning him.
There is not a uniform view within the Congress about criticising the RSS the way some party leaders do. A section of the leadership is of the opinion that the party should remain as much indifferent towards the Congress as possible.
The RSS leaders have never openly spoken against the Congress. While it is an undeniable fact that they patronise the BJP, they have never taken an open stance and have maintained an “apolitical character” in public.
Kharge’s son, Priyank Kharge, who is a minister in the Karnataka government, also demanded a ban on the RSS recently. The Karnataka government had earlier issued orders under Section 144 prohibiting the gathering of more than 10 persons at public places like parks or playgrounds owned by the government. The aim and the target of the ban were obviously the RSS activities, to prevent the organisation from holding its regular daily morning and evening drills. The ban was set aside by the Karnataka High Court.
While the Kharge father-son duo have been seeking a ban on the RSS, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister K. Shivakumar recited the RSS anthem praising the motherland, ‘Namaste sada vatsale matrabhoomey…’ in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly. Although he later clarified that he will live and die as a Congressman only, he did not distance himself from the RSS anthem and said he had learnt it while studying in an RSS school. He also praised the RSS for doing a lot for education in the rural areas of Karnataka.
Shivakumar is only one of the examples of Congress leaders having been aligned and associated with the RSS at some point of time. Veteran Congressman and former President Pranab Mukherjee attended the RSS congregation at its headquarters in Nagpur and was full of praise for the organisation.
That leads to the question as to how many people in the Congress would buy Kharge’s suggestion of seeking a ban on the organisation. That he was himself aware of what he was saying was obvious from his “measured words,” insisting that in his “personal opinion, a ban should be imposed (on RSS),” thus trying to mark the difference between him as a person and the party president. But people in public life holding important positions like that of the Congress president cannot have separate personal and official positions and opinions.
Given the reach and influence of the RSS across the country, particularly in the Hindi heartland, including Bihar, Kharge has taken a big gamble by favouring a ban on the RSS. The Congress leadership needs to do some extra homework on the matter. The RSS volunteers are, no doubt, largely the supporters of the BJP, but it may not necessarily always be so. The Congress leadership should better leave the RSS untouched, the same way the RSS leaves the Congress untouched. Silent indifference, instead of open hostility towards the RSS, may serve the Congress better in the long run.
Also Read: In my personal opinion, RSS should be banned: Kharge
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