No one an outsider for RSS: Mohan Bhagwat in Lucknow

The Opposition parties have been targeting the RSS ideology after BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri used objectionable remarks against BSP MP Danish Ali in the Lok Sabha last week and triggered a political row.

Notably, Bhagwat took a similar line in 2018, while speaking at a conclave on ‘Future of Bharat: An RSS Perspective’ in New Delhi at a time when “Congress-mukt Bharat” has been the refrain of BJP’s electoral politics. After Bhagwat’s remark in 2018, senior BJP senior leaders almost stopped making call for a “Congress free-India.”

Now, ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, the RSS chief repeated the same statement of 2018 in Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh that sends maximum members to the Lok Sabha at a time when the BJP has faced setbacks in recent bypolls as Muslims and Dalits largely voted to Samajwadi Party (SP). The BJP is already reaching out to Pasmanda Muslims and Dalits to gain their support ahead of the 2024 elections.

In his address on Monday, Bhagwat added that the RSS believes in the “approach to unite” and “invite everyone from the society.” “Isme Sangh ka paraya koi nahi. Jo aaj hamara virodh karte hai, woh bhi hamare hai. Yeh hamara pucca hai, ki unke virodh se hamari kshati na ho, itni chinta hum zaroor karenge (Nobody is an outsider for the Sangh. Those who oppose us today are also ours. That’s certain. We will be concerned if their opposition is going to harm us),” he said, according to a release issued by the RSS’s Awadh prant (region) unit. Bhagwat appealed the gathering to support RSS volunteers in their “good initiatives for social reforms.”

Referring to Bhagwat’s remarks, an RSS functionary said later in the day, “He has affirmed that India is a country where everyone is welcomed and accepted. RSS has acceptance of all. RSS treats everyone equally.”