India's diversity must be respected, celebrated and it should not be a reason for any discord in society, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat said Monday, launching an unprecedented outreach to make the organisation better understood.
On the first day of the three-day conclave "Bhavishya Ka Bharat -- An RSS Perspective", he elaborated on evolution of the RSS, which he said cannot be compared to any other organisation.
Almost all major opposition parties gave the conclave a miss though the RSS had invited them. However, many leaders of the ruling BJP were present, as were many Bollywood actors, artists and academicians.
"India is a country full of diversity and it must be respected and celebrated," he said, adding that it should not become a reason for "discord" in the society.
The outreach comes at a time when the Congress-led opposition has been ramping up attacks on the RSS, accusing it of promoting divisive ideology and attacking minorities.
In his around 80-minute speech, Bhagwat spoke on a variety of issues, including the freedom movement, and acknowledged the role of the Congress, which has been among the organisation's biggest critics.
"Congress played a big role in freedom movement and gave India many great personalities," he said.
Speaking about the holding of the event in the national capital, he said the organisation wanted people to understand its functioning as the work it does is "incomparable".
The main aim of the RSS is reforming the society by riding it of its ills, he said, claiming that an RSS worker considers the entire society as his own.
The venue of the event is Vigyan Bhavan, where usually major government events are held.
The aim of the three-day conclave is to engage with a cross section of people and present its perspective on future of the country.
Bhagwat said the event was being organised so that people could understand the organisation.
For the sake of uniting society, no one is stranger to us, not even those who are opposed to us. - PTI
We believe in an India which includes everyone and does not exclude anybody. That is why we try to approach everyone. - PTI
We do not want to dominate the society. The Sangh wants common man to lead the society in the right direction. - PTI
People tell us that Sangh is becoming faceless. We want to be faceless so that we don't become arrogant. If tomorrow pictures of Mohan Bhagwat start getting published in newspapers, it will be a matter of concern for Mohan Bhagwat.
Dr Hedgewar (the founding chief of the RSS) always used to say for how long will we blame the Muslim invaders and British for our state. How did it happen that a handful of invaders from thousands of miles away conquered this nation of warriors. He used to say there is some problem in you which you need to correct.
When we forgot our values, our decline started. If you study it, then India's decline started with our decline. The solution is to come back to it (values).
Hedgewar said we will organise Hindu community. He did not make this proclamation because he wanted to oppose somebody, but he wanted to unite people.
Who will be in power, what policy the country will accept is something to be decided by the society and people. There are mechanisms in place for that...We are not concerned about that, what we are concerned about is the conduct of society.
Sangh is the most democratic organisation. We function by consensus. Here every worker can express his views. There are no restrictions...We have started our work to make a certain kind of people and society and we do not want anything else.
People often believe that RSS is a dictatorial organisation and that one man decides everything... If you want to see the most open organisation, then you should come to Sangh. There is no restriction. An RSS worker conducts himself in line with values given to him by the organisation.
from Daily News & Analysis https://ift.tt/2D7DPoj
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