Days after one of its senior functionaries opposed a caste census, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) on Thursday said that any such census should be used for the upliftment of society, emphasising that political parties must ensure that social harmony is not disrupted due to any reason.
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The statement, being seen as a damage control attempt, came after Shridhar Gadge, Sah Sanghachalak of Vidarbha region, questioned the need for a caste census. He said that while it may benefit some people politically, it was not good for national unity.
“We feel that there should be no caste-based census, because there is no reason to do it. What will we achieve by doing the caste-based census? It is wrong,” said Mr. Gadge.
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‘Need Hindu society sans inequality’
Clarifying the Sangh’s official stand through social media, the organisation’s head of publicity Sunil Ambekar said that the RSS was continuously working towards its goal of creating a Hindu society free from any kind of discrimination and inequality.
“It is true that due to various historical reasons, many sections of the society have been left out, from an economic, social and educational point of view. For their upliftment, governments are planning various schemes from time to time and the RSS has always supported the same,” he said.
He added that the RSS was of the opinion that the caste survey should be used for the overall development of society and that all parties should ensure that it does not harm social harmony and unity.
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RSS against Dalit rights: Congress
The Congress and some other Opposition parties have been demanding a caste census, which had also become a poll issue during the recent Assembly elections. On Thursday, Congress took to X (formerly Twitter) to criticise Mr. Gadge’s statement.
“The RSS, which runs the BJP, has always been against the caste census. The stand of RSS and BJP on this is very clear. Dalits and backward classes should not get their rights at any cost. Because of this disgusting thinking, there has not been a single RSS president from Dalit or backward class in 100 years,” the Congress post said.
It added that a caste census was very important to remove social and economic inequality in the country. With such a survey, policies can be made to ensure equal rights for the exploited, deprived, Dalit, and backward classes, it noted. “RSS and BJP are afraid of this very thing,” the Congress post added.
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A senior RSS office bearer responded, saying that the Opposition had a habit of speaking without doing its homework. He pointed out that RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has, on several occasions, backed reservations meant for the upliftment of the backward classes. “In his annual Dussehra speech for many years, Mr. Bhagwat has been stressing on the motto of getting rid of things like untouchability and other evils that prevails in the society pertaining to caste system,” he added.
Past controversies
In fact, weeks before the 2015 Assembly election in Bihar, Mr. Bhagwat had stirred up a controversy by saying that there should be a “review” of the reservation policy.
Back in 1981, the RSS’ highest decision making body, the Akhil Bharatiya Poratinidhi Sabha (ABTS), had said that the policy of reservation has, because of its wrong implementation, become a tool for power politics and election tactics instead of serving the purpose for which it was framed. This has resulted in generating mutual ill will and conflict in several parts of the country, it had said.
“The RSS therefore suggests the constituting of a committee of non-partisan social thinkers, which will study in depth all the problems arising out of reservations and suggest positive steps for the uplift of Harijans and tribals,” the ABPS statement had said.