RSS National Council Meet: Election Issues To Feature Big

New Delhi: As the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) conducts its three-day National Council Meet at Nagpur, a host of issues of national import are up for deliberation. Being held weeks before the general election and a year before the centenary celebration of the organisation, the annual Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha (ABPS), it is likely to make important decisions.

RSS chief Dr Mohan Bhagwat and general secretary Dattatreya Hosabale inaugurated the Pratinidhi Sabha at Reshimbag, the headquarters of the Sangh on Friday. It would discuss issues such as implementation of the Uniform Civil Code, Sandeshkhali violence in West Bengal and farmers’ demand on Minimum Support Price (MSP), which are likely to impact the Lok Sabha polls this year, at length.

The annual meet will also witness the election of Sarkaryavah (general secretary) – the number two position in the RSS hierarchy after that of Sarsanghchalak. Currently, Dattatreya Hosabale, who was elected in 2021, holds the position.

“During the Pratinidhi Sabha, besides reviewing previous year’s work, discussions will be held on the planning for a yearlong centennial celebration of the Sangh. It will begin on the auspicious day of Vijaya Dashami next year (2025) and conclude on the same day in 2026,” Akhil Bharatiya Prachar Pramukh of the RSS, Sunil Ambekar said in Nagpur on Wednesday.

“Discussion will also take place on ‘Panch Parivartan’, which include five key points for social transformation—Samajik Samarasta (social harmony), Kutumbh Prabhodhan (family values), Paryavaran (environment), the insistence on ‘Swa’ (self) and the duties of the citizens,” he added.

“The consecration of Ram Temple and Pran Prathishtha of Sri Ram Lalla (idol of Ram) on 22nd January this year has ushered in an environment of excitement and joy. This historic event is very important from the Bharatiya perspective. The Pratinidhi Sabha will pass a resolution in this regard,” said Ambekar.

The Sangh will also discuss plans to increase the number of its sakhas from 68,000 to one lakh across the country.

On the first day of the meet, a new curriculum in Sangh Shiksha Varg (annual training camps) with a new format has been introduced, replacing the previous one. This new system with a five-level programme will specially include practical training (vyavahrik prashikshan).

ABOUT ABPS

The ABPS is an annual meeting of the highest decision-making body for policy formulation in the RSS, in which the Sangh’s activities of the previous year are reviewed and plans for the next year chalked out. The three-day meeting is generally held in the first fortnight of March in different parts of the country.

As laid down in its constitution, the RSS holds elections for its Sarkaryavah every three years. For this purpose, the Pratinidhi Sabha is usually held in Nagpur. However, there was an exception in 2021, when the meeting was held in Bengaluru, electing incumbent Dattatreya Hosabale to the post. The last meeting at the RSS headquarters, therefore, was held six years ago.

The ABPS will witness participation of more than 1529 office-bearers of 36 organisations under the Sangh umbrella, including RSS-affiliates like Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, Bharatiya Kisan Sangh, Swadeshi Jagran Manch, Vijnana Bharati, Vidya Bharati, Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram, etc., and Vibhag Pramukhs. The representatives from the Bharatiya Janata Party will also be a part of this conclave.