"Family Matters...": RSS Leader On JP Nadda's 'BJP Self-Sufficient' Remark

Senior Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) functionary Sunil Ambekar on Wednesday termed BJP president JP Nadda's remarks that the saffron party had grown from relying on the RSS to becoming self-sufficient a "family matter".

Asked if Mr Nadda's comments caused a rift between the BJP and the Sangh, Mr Ambekar, who is RSS' Akhil Bharatiya Prachar Pramukh, said, "We solve family matters like family matters. We don't discuss such issues on public platforms.”

In a media interview in May, Mr Nadda said the BJP has grown from the time it needed the RSS and is now “saksham” (capable) and runs its own affairs. The RSS, he had said, is an “ideological front” and does its own work.

Speaking at the India Today Conclave in Mumbai, Mr Ambekar said that even if people join the Sangh thinking about political gains, they automatically start doing good work due to their association with the organisation.

Mr Ambekar said many people approach the RSS daily wanting to do good work. Several from the IT sector also approach RSS as they feel the need to serve others, he said. 

India's Potential

To a query on India's strengths and weaknesses in the past 10 years, Mr Ambekar said the world now recognises India's power and also potential in sectors like science and economy.

"Earlier, people used to think that there is no future in this country. Now, the feeling is that there is a strong possibility to rise, and Bharat has the potential,” Ambekar said.

"However, there are many challenges at the societal level. Social disparity and some social fault lines are still a challenge. We need to work a lot for social harmony," he said.

Mr Ambekar had earlier claimed that many organisations have reported that religious conversions, especially by the missionaries, are taking place in Tamil Nadu and described it as "very worrisome".

Asked about the claim, Mr Ambekar said, “We have noticed that the religious conversion in Tamil Nadu state is being encouraged through various ways and some people have taken some political angle also.”

“It is wrong to lure or force someone to convert to some other religion. The society opposes it, and the RSS stands with such society,” he added.

Caste Census

Asked about the Congress party insisting on a caste-based census in the country, he said, "Some people could not progress because of the caste. It is a fault line of our society. Every government brings out some welfare schemes, and there is nothing wrong with it. For such a scheme, you need some data which it can collect. However, this practice should not become a political tool and electioneering around it is wrong."

Manipur Violence

On the situation in Manipur, which faced ethnic clashes, Mr Ambekar said, "It is a serious matter, and it is serious for everyone in the country. RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has also expressed concerns over the situation in that state."

RSS workers are active there on the ground to establish peace. They are trying to find a solution and efforts are on for it, he said.

On the work done by RSS in Manipur, he said, "We are trying to reach every person. We have made representations before the government there formally and through informal channels. When a deep mistrust is generated at such a level, there is no quick solution. I am confident that people can come and meet at the societal level. At the government level, stopping people from carrying arms is important.”

There was no demand from the ground level that RSS shakhas should have boys and girls participating together and "society is not asking for it", he said.

If such a demand is made, the Sangh will make necessary changes in the present structure, he said.

A shakha is a place where RSS volunteers gather every day. The daily routine programmes held there include physical exercises and singing patriotic songs.

Asked why women don't hold any high positions in the organisation, he said, "As a structure on the ground, the RSS shakhas are only for boys. But the Rashtra Sevika Samiti, an all-women organisation (of the RSS), has been doing the same work as the RSS since the 1930s. The basic structure of RSS is shakha. This structure is for the man-making process."

"Man-making and nation-building is RSS' mission. Hence, shakhas have only males, while Rashtra Sevika Samiti has women (as members)...When residents of a locality say that girls and boys can play together, we will make necessary changes in our structure. But society is not asking for anything like that," he said.

"Society is not asking for girls and boys to play together. The current structure is a matter of convenience, and that is why there is such an arrangement (of Sangh having only boys as volunteers)," he said. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)