New Delhi: The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has decided not to invite Pakistani and Bangladeshi diplomats for the three-day lecture series to be held later this month as part of Sangh’s centenary celebrations. Invites are also unlikely to be extended to Turkish diplomats, it is learnt. Apart from diplomats, invites for the lecture series to be addressed by sarsanghachalak Mohan Bhagwat will also be extended to academicians, politicians, intellectuals, journalists, industrialists, entrepreneurs, and influencers, among others.
According to an RSS functionary, the idea is to reach all sections of society and representatives of Muslim and Christian communities are also expected to attend.
Addressing a press conference here Tuesday, RSS’s akhil bharatiya prachar pramukh Sunil Ambekar said, “On the occasion of the centenary year, continuous discussions have taken place about the work of the Sangh, its ideology, and direction it wants to take in the coming years. Deliberations have also been held over areas to which the Sangh wishes to channel the energy of its swayamsevaks. As part of the centenary celebrations, there will be a special initiative to convey all these ideas to every section of society.”
He added, “We are in touch with different embassies but I don’t think Pakistan will be invited. The atmosphere is not conducive.”
The three-day lecture series will be organised at Vigyan Bhavan from 26 to 28 August. On the third day, Bhagwat will take questions from the attendees.
Earlier this year, condemning Turkey’s military support to Pakistan, the Swadeshi Jagaran Manch (SJM), an RSS affiliate, had called for economic sanctions against the country. It appealed to Modi to temporarily suspend direct flights to Turkey and revoke aviation codeshare privileges until Ankara halted defence equipment supplies to Islamabad.
And in March this year, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) said the Yunus-led interim government and the army were not taking concrete steps to stop atrocities against religious minorities in Bangladesh. Given that an interim government is in place in Bangladesh, it is unlikely that an invite will be extended to Dhaka, a senior RSS functionary told ThePrint on condition of anonymity, adding that the process to finalise invitations is ongoing and members from opposition parties in India will also be invited.
“As part of the centenary year celebrations, prominent civic gatherings are being organised all over the country. In various places, several senior functionaries of the Sangh will attend and share their thoughts. Experts in their respective fields will also express their views…,” the functionary added.
Unlike in 2018 when a similar event was organised just in New Delhi, this time around the Sangh also plans to organise such events in Bengaluru in November, and Kolkata and Mumbai in February next year.
Ambekar said the title of the lecture series is ‘100-year journey of RSS: new horizons’.
“The idea is to share the 100-year experience … the yatra (journey) Sangh has undertaken. Sarsanghachalak ji will discuss the experience and will dwell on what all needs to be done in the future,” he explained.
Explaining the invitation criterion, Ambekar said 17 broad categories have been prepared, which have been further divided into 138 sub-categories to ensure Sangh is able to reach various sections of society. “There is a lot of excitement amongst swayamsevaks. There was also a discussion within RSS that Sangh has tried to reach all sections of society and what are the issues RSS wants to focus on in the future … the work and views of the RSS also need to be taken to the people in this centenary year, it was felt,” he said.
Of the different programmes to be held across the country, Bhagwat will initiate a dialogue with different sections of society in at least four events, Ambekar said. He added that even today a ‘colonial parameter’ is followed in various fields, including economics and medicine, among others, and there is a need to reassess these parameters.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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