Bengaluru: Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge on Saturday launched a scathing attack on the RSS, questioning its role in the freedom movement. The leader posed a challenge to the party by asking it to name members, who had sacrificed their lives during the freedom struggle.
“My only question to the RSS is this: tell us which freedom struggle you participated in,” Kharge said, quoted India Today.
He made the remark amid a separate political row in Karnataka over the state government’s proposed legislation to regulate the use of government premises and public property by organisations. This could affect activities of the RSS shakhas, which are mainly held in public spaces.
He went on to claim that he could provide a list of 500 Congress members who sacrificed their lives during the Independence movement. He challenged the RSS to produce a list of even 50 such names.
He also blamed the RSS of being involved in spreading communal tensions after Partition.
Kharge also questioned the organisational status of the RSS. “RSS cannot be banned. What Santosh and Mohan Bhagwat said is true: they cannot be banned. The reason is that they are not even registered. For me to ban your organisation, shouldn’t you be registered first?” he added.