BJP on Sunday hit out at Congress Priyank Kharge for seeking a ban on RSS, sharing an old photo of his father Mallikarjun Kharge at a Shakha camp. Leaders of Karnataka Congress, Priyank Kharge and Yathindra Siddaramaiah in particular, have stirred a controversy over their comments on the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), prompting the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to counter with an old photo of Mallikarjun Kharge from a visit to the RSS camp.
Karnataka minister Priyank Kharge, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s son, sought a ban on RSS activities in government institutions in the state while state chief minister Siddaramaiah’s son Yathidra likened the RSS to the Taliban. Karnataka’s minister of rural development and panchayat raj, Priyank Kharge has written to chief minister Siddaramaiah seeking a statewide ban on activities of the RSS – BJP’s ideological mentor – in government institutions and public spaces, arguing that the organisation’s ideology contradicts the values enshrined in the Indian Constitution.
In his letter, written on October 4 and made pubic by the chief minister’s office (CMO) on Sunday, Priyank Kharge alleged that the RSS has been conducting shakhas and gatherings in government and aided schools, as well as on public grounds, where he said “slogans are shouted and negative ideas are instilled in the minds of children and youth.”
Priyank Kharge described the RSS’s belief system as “contrary to India’s ideals of unity and secular framework.” “When divisive forces that sow hatred among the people raise their heads, our Constitution, founded on the core principles of integrity, equality, and unity, grants us the authority to curb such elements and uphold the secular values of the nation,” Priyank Kharge’s letter.
Priyank Kharge also claimed that the organisation was conducting aggressive drills without police permission and that such displays “could have a harmful psychological impact on children and young people.” Seeking government’s intervention, Priyank Kharge urged the chief minister to prohibit all RSS activities, including shakhas, sanghiks, and baithaks, across government-controlled spaces such as schools, public parks, temples under the Muzrai Department, as well as at archaeological sites.
