Remarks made in Dharam Sansad not Hindutva: RSS Chief Bhagwat

TIL Desk/National/Nagpur/ Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat has said some of the statements made at a recent event titled ‘Dharam Sansad’, which kicked up a row, were not “Hindu words” and those following Hindutva would never agree with them.  He was speaking on the topic ‘Hindutva and National Integration’ at a lecture series organised by Lokmat Media group to mark the golden jubilee of its Lokmat Nagpur edition.       

“The statements, which came out of the Dharam Sansad are not Hindu words, work or heart. If I sometimes say something in anger, then it is not Hindutva. The RSS or those following Hindutva do not believe in this,” he said. The RSS chief was apparently referring to the Dharam Sansad held in Chhattisgarh recently, where Hindu religious leader Kalicharan Maharaj allegedly made derogatory statements against Mahatma Gandhi while eulogising his assassin Nathuram Godse.       

Another ‘Dharam Sansad’ was held in Uttarakhand’s Haridwar in December, during which provocative speeches inciting violence against Muslims were allegedly made by participants. An FIR had been lodged under section 153A of the IPC (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language). The Sangh chief said, “Even Veer Savarkar had said if the Hindu community gets united and organised, it will speak about the Bhagwad Gita and not about finishing or harming anyone.”