Karnataka: Continuing his attack on Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Karnataka IT minister and Congress leader Priyank M Kharge, on Monday, November 3, questioned why public taxpayers money is being spent for RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s security. He further questioned if the Hindutva organisation is “scared” of the law and hence did not register itself as an NGO.
It may be noted that Priyank Kharge and his father Mallikarjun Kharge, who is the Congress national president, have both been questioning the RSS publicly, which is very rare today. Many from the opposition attack the BJP, but question rarely the RSS, which is its parent organisation. Priyank’s remarks come at a time in Karnataka which in recent years has seen a lot of Hindutva violence against minorities.
Remarking on the immunity granted to the RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat he asked, “Why has the head of an NGO been granted top-level security under the liaison protocol? What makes it necessary to spend public taxpayers’ money on providing such security to a person who has not paid even a single rupee in taxes? When they already have sticks and battalions at their disposal, what additional protection do they need?”
The RSS chief was first appointed with Z+ security, which was then upgraded in August 2024 to the highest-level Advanced Security Liaison (ASL) protocol. Provided by the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), the security includes bullet-proof vehicles, approximately 60 commandos, and thorough coordination with local authorities, a recent risk assessment confirmed.
Why isn’t RSS registered?
“If you are the world’s largest NGO, shouldn’t you be registered? Why are they so scared of the Indian laws and the Indian Constitution?” he asked while speaking to reporters on Monday.
Kharge’s shot comes amid the growing issue over the RSS scheduled route march in Chittapur, Kalaburagi district, which is notably his political home ground.
The ASL upgrades security is on par with the security level of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
He also slammed the organisation’s low tolerance for criticism, “Why do they behave as if they’ve been stung by a scorpion whenever someone demands accountability from the RSS?”
Even though the organisation is influential, Kharge stated that “the majority of people in this country neither support nor accept the RSS. They are not above the nation, the Constitution, or the law.”
Just a day before, on Sunday, he had questioned the functioning and finances of RSS, claiming that it works without registration.
“The RSS has officially stated in writing that it is not a registered entity. If it truly serves the nation selflessly, why not register like the lakhs of NGOs that work transparently and lawfully?” he wrote on his X account.
He further questioned the source of their funding, “Where do their donations come from, and who are the donors? Who pays the full-time pracharakas and funds the organisation’s daily operations and so-called social campaigns?”
Remarking on the sheer lack of accountability of the organisation, he said, “If the RSS is unregistered and unaccountable, isn’t it evading scrutiny and taxes while claiming to serve the nation? How does this make them Desh Bhakts?”
As a result of his critique of the organisation and his demands for a ban, Priyank Kharge and his family had received death threats as well as abusive calls, which he called “a small example of the kind of filth the RSS is trying to fill in the minds of young people.”
The RSS has a long history of getting banned in the Indian government. It was banned in 1948, after the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, between 1975 and 1977, during the Emergency, and other such times when there were concerns regarding national integrity and communal harmony.
RSS was founded by Keshav Baliram Hedgewar in 1925 to advocate Hindu nationalism.
Previously, on October 31, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge called for its ban, referencing Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s earlier ban on the organisation and a letter in which Patel allegedly asserted that the RSS had created the atmosphere that led to Mahatma Gandhi’s death.
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