NEW DELHI: As opposition parties slammed PM Narendra Modi over his remarks praising RSS in his independence day speech, BJP dismissed the criticism asserting that the Hindutva organisation’s ideology is shaping India’s public discourse today.BJP’s IT department head Amit Malviya recalled that the country’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, had invited the RSS to join the Republic Day parade in 1963 and had called it an organisation of patriots. “As the RSS marks 100 years, it is fitting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentions it from the Red Fort,” he said, reacting to Congress leader Jairam Ramesh’s criticism.Malviya said, “India’s public discourse today is shaped by RSS ideology, while the Congress is detached not only from the realities of our times but also from Nehru himself.” In his speech, Modi had hailed 100 years of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) as a “very proud and glorious” journey of likely the “world’s biggest NGO” and lauded all its volunteers for their dedicated service to the nation.Himself a RSS ‘pracharak’ for decades, Modi has praised the organisation earlier too and chose the occasion to highlight its journey since its foundation in 1925. RSS has been connected with BJP, and its functionaries work at key positions in the party organisation.
