Karnataka minister says RSS must register or face legal actionKarnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge has intensified his criticism of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), describing it as the “most unpatriotic and anti-national organisation in the history of India” and reiterating that it should be brought under a legal registration framework.
Speaking at a conference titled Why Registration of the RSS is Necessary in New Delhi, organised by Samajwadi Sangam, Kharge alleged that the RSS presents itself as a patriotic organisation while questioning the nationalism of others despite what he described as its own controversial history.
“They believe they are the biggest patriotic organisation and keep issuing certificates of patriotism to others. But the truth is that the RSS is the most unpatriotic and anti-national organisation in India’s history,” Kharge said.
Kharge threatens legislation in Karnataka
Kharge said he had written to RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat shortly after taking charge as Karnataka Home Minister, asking the organisation to register itself. He claimed that despite several weeks having passed, he had received no response.”I knew he would not respond, but this is only the beginning,” he said.
The Congress leader warned that if the RSS continued to function without registration, the Karnataka government could introduce legislation to make registration mandatory.
“If necessary, we will bring legislation in Karnataka to bring the RSS under the ambit of the law. They take advantage of loopholes to avoid registration. If they want to function peacefully in Karnataka, they will have to register. If they do not comply with the law, they will face action, including a ban,” Kharge said.
Alleges RSS opposed Constitution and Tricolour
Referring to India’s freedom movement, Kharge alleged that the RSS had historically opposed both the Constitution and the national flag.
He also claimed that the organisation had held “150 rallies at Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan against the Constitution.”
Senior advocate Prashant Bhushan, who also addressed the event, said the debate over the RSS’s legal status had become an important constitutional issue.
“The expansion of the RSS can only be countered through the expansion of constitutionalism,” Bhushan said.
Bhagwat earlier rejected demandKharge had previously urged the RSS, during its centenary year, to register itself and make its functioning more transparent.
Responding to the demand, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat dismissed it as a political exercise.
“I don’t need to respond. There are many unregistered institutions and traditions. We are not secretive. We work openly, invite people and tell them about the Sangh. This is politics, and these gimmicks have been tried before. We are used to it,” Bhagwat had said.
The RSS, founded in 1925, has been banned three times in its history—following Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination in 1948, during the Emergency in 1975, and after the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992. The last ban was lifted in 1993.
