Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat on Thursday answered questions of the media as part of the three-day lecture series on ‘100 years of Sangh journey’.
Here are the top quotes from his address:
- 01
Should Indian leaders retire at 75?
“I never said I will retire or someone should retire. In Sangh, we are given a job, whether we want it or not. If I am 80 years old, and Sangh says go and run a ‘shakha’, I will have to do it. We do whatever the Sangh tells us to do…This is not for anyone’s retirement. We are ready to retire or work – as long as the Sangh wants us to.”
- 02
On Trump’s tariffs
“We don’t tell government how to deal with Trump; they know what to do and we will support it. Need to learn to live and die for nation, promote entrepreneurship to become self-reliant and developed country.“
- 03
Three-child policy for India?
“This is what doctors have said… Our country’s population recommends a birth rate of 2.1, which is fine as an average, but you can never have 0.1 of a child. In math, 2.1 becomes 2, but when it comes to births, after two, it has to be three.”
- 04
Co-ordination with governments
“We are having good coordination with every government, both state governments and central governments. But there are systems which have some internal contradictions. The system in general is the same, which was invented by the British so that they can rule. So, we have to have some innovations. Then, we want something to happen. Even if the man in the chair is 100% for us, he has to do it, and knows what the hurdles are. He may or may not be able to do it. We have to give him that independence. There is no quarrel anywhere…”
- 05
RSS supports reservation
“In the past, even sangh workers were divided on the issue of reservation. But sensitivity matters here the most. Caste violence still takes place. These incidents must stop. We need to stand with justice. Whatever is outdated is bound to go; the caste system was there once, but has no relevance today. RSS fully supports Constitutionally-mandated reservation policies and will support it till the time it is required.”
- 06
On religious conversion and infiltration
“Religion is an individual’s own choice. No one should be forcefully converted. We have to stop it. The second issue is infiltration. Every country has their own rules and regulations, limited resources. So, infiltration should be stopped and the government is making efforts to stop this… It is important to give employment to the citizens of our country.”
- 07
On languages
“There is no problem in learning English but we must not disown our own culture and language, all languages born in India are national languages; we need one common language to interact, but it should not be foreign. No point in having any dispute over languages, all should together decide on common transactional language. Everyone should be fluent in mother tongue, language of state and common transactional language; no bar in learning more.”
- 08
On illegal immigrants
“Conversion and illegal migration are key reasons for demographic imbalance. We should not give jobs to illegal immigrants; we should give jobs to our own people, including Muslims. Every nation has its rules and regulations. The world is ‘Kutumb’, but every place has its own standards. Freedom is discipline also… Not allowing illegal immigrants in the country doesn’t contradict the concept of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’.”
- 09
Assistance to political parties
“We provide assistance to those who seek help from us for good work. When we attempt to provide assistance, those who run away from us often don’t receive the help they need, so what can we do?… But sometimes, to run the country or to carry out a party’s work, if it is good, our volunteers go and help…We have no hesitation.”
- 10
Hindu-Muslim unity
“Why is there a talk of Hindu-Muslim unity when all are same. We all are Indians, why is there even a question of unity? The only difference is the ways to worship… The Hindu thinking does not say Islam won’t be here. Akhand Bharat is fact of life, we should realise our culture and ancestors are same.”
