Political row erupts after DD telecasts Patriotic RSS’ chief’s speech

Ashwin Shuklapaksha Dashami/Ekadashi, Kaliyug Varsha 5116

Indians are wondering about who is anti-national : Those who are cursing DD for telecasting patriotic RSS’ chief’s speech or RSS !- Editor

NEW DELHI : Public broadcaster Doordarshan’s live telecast of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s customary Vijayadashmi speech triggered a controversy on Friday, with the political class and social commentators calling it a dangerous trend of state patronage of majoritarian politics.

In RSS’s Foundation Day address, Bhagwat was beamed live nationally as he touched upon issues like illegal immigration from Bangladesh, jihadi activities and threats to Hindus. Even universal concerns like terror, when spoken about by RSS, acquire a sensitive edge.

The opposition parties, which did not expect the Modi government to openly patronize the RSS like this, reacted with alarm. The Congress and Left parties hit out at the DD broadcast, while some public intellectuals described it as “misuse of state machinery”.

 

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat speaks
during the Vijaydashmi function at RSS headquarters in Nagpur.

But brushing aside the criticism, Narendra Modi hailed Bhagwat’s address and the issues raised by him as “very relevant”. The PM also tweeted an online link to the summary of the speech from his personal Twitter handle, indicating that he was not apologetic about his government’s decision to put the RSS chief’s speech live on Doordarshan. BJP, too, backed the decision, while the broadcaster said it had covered the speech as a news event.

Calling it as setting a “dangerous trend”, Congress spokesman Sandeep Dikshit said, “This is not an organization which is completely neutral. It is a controversial organization.” He asked what would happen if other religious outfits like Jamaat-e-Islami or Church of North India sought similar coverage from DD. Another Congress spokesman Abhishek Singhvi said this reinforced the fear that the country was ruled “from and for Nagpur” — a shorthand for Hindutva agenda.

Historian and social commentator Ramchandra Guha called it “naked state majoritarianism” which needed to be resisted. “This (live telecast) is a dangerous misuse of the state machinery. The RSS is a sectarian Hindu body. Next, imams in mosques and priests in churches may ask that DD cover their speeches live,” he tweeted.

Left outfits CPI and CPM were equally critical. In a statement, CPM said, “The RSS uses the occasion to propagate its Hindutva ideology. The public broadcaster has no business to telecast live the speech of the chief of an organization like the RSS.”

The day marked a significant first for RSS and gave an indication of what may be in store in the Modi-led BJP government. The track record of the Hindutva fountainhead has been controversial and while BJP leaders have always proclaimed allegiance to the Sangh, in official business they have maintained a distance.

The first BJP government headed by Atal Bihari Vajpayee which ruled from 1998 to 2004 steered clear of mainstreaming the Hindutva outfit as has been done by the DD broadcast. What perhaps marks the difference between Vajpayee and Modi governments is the numerical comfort the BJP enjoys now in Parliament. In fact, BJP may be inclined to believe that criticism of the saffron agenda may only further consolidate the Hindu vote base in its favour.

Source : Times Of India