RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat says in Mumbai at event attended by Salman Khan

Bhagwat said that the Sangh focuses on supporting and strengthening the positive efforts underway in the country.

Salman Khan attended the RSS event organized in Mumbai on Saturday. — Mohan Bhagwat said that the RSS is not against anyone and does not desire power or authority.

New Delhi: Bollywood actor Salman Khan also attended the event organized in Mumbai on Saturday to mark the 100th anniversary of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). He sat in front of the stage with filmmaker Subhash Ghai and lyricist Prasoon Joshi, listening to the speech by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat. At the event, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat said that only Hindus live in India, and there is no one else. It does not represent a religion associated with any particular ritual or prayer, nor is it the name of any specific community.

RSS not against anyone

He said that the RSS is not against anyone and does not desire power or authority. The Sangh is not directly involved in politics, although some people from the Sangh are active in politics. Bhagwat said, “Many people say that Narendra Bhai is the RSS’s Prime Minister. His political party, the BJP, is different. It has many volunteers, but it is not the Sangh’s. Sangh volunteers are in it.”

Bhagwat said, “India’s partition happened because of religion. We said that we respect all religions because we are Hindus. Islam and Christianity still exist in India. Clashes happen, but the country has remained united. Forgetting the Hindu spirit also became a reason for the partition.”

Key takeaways from Bhagwat’s speech

Bhagwat said that the Sangh focuses on supporting and strengthening the positive efforts underway in the country. The Sangh is not a paramilitary force. Despite route marches and lathi (stick) drills by volunteers, the RSS should not be seen as a wrestling arena or a military organization.

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Adopting Hindutva does not require anyone to give up anything. Neither your method of worship changes, nor your language, nor your lifestyle. Hindutva means security and the assurance of living together. It does not talk about imposing any one religion, said the RSS chief.

People’s faith, eating habits, and language may be different, but we are all part of the same society, culture, and country. This thinking is called Hindutva; you can call it Indianness. Therefore, the saying “Hindu-Muslim unity” is not accurate, because we are already one.

Before the RSS was formed in 1925, the British created the Indian National Congress (INC) as their safety valve. But later, Indians transformed that same Congress into a powerful weapon in the fight for independence, he said.