SOURCE :- SIASAT NEWS
Bengaluru: KPCC president B.K. Hariprasad triggered a fresh political controversy on Monday, August 17, by drawing a comparison between the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Jaish-e-Mohammed and the Taliban, claiming that there was no difference between the three organisations as they were not registered in India.
Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru, Hariprasad was responding to the ongoing controversy over the national song Vande Mataram and comments made by Kerala Vice-Chancellor Mohanan Kunnummal. He also criticised the RSS, alleging that its members did not sing Vande Mataram or the national anthem and did not hoist the national flag.
“Jaish-e-Mohammed, Taliban, and RSS are no different because none of these three are registered in India,” Hariprasad said, escalating the political debate over the status and functioning of the RSS.
Vande Mataram row expands into RSS status
His remarks came after an FIR was registered against senior Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi over allegations that they disrupted the singing of Vande Mataram. The issue has since become a major point of confrontation between the Congress and BJP.
The controversy has also expanded into a debate over the legal status of the RSS. Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge had questioned under which laws the organisation owns property and bank accounts and receives donations.
The issue intensified after BJP national general secretary (organisation) B.L. Santhosh said at an Akhanda Bharat Sankalpa Diwas programme organised by the Hindu Jagarana Vedike that the RSS did not require legal registration to function.
Santhosh argued that the RSS has been functioning since 1925 without statutory registration and described it as a public-trust-based organisation. He maintained that public confidence, rather than documentation, was the key factor.
“The trust of the people is important, not paperwork,” Santhosh said, defending the RSS.
He also claimed that the RSS had stood by the nation during the Partition and other difficult periods despite not having formal state certification.
The exchange has opened another political front in Karnataka, with Congress leaders questioning the RSS’s legal status and BJP leaders defending its historical role and legitimacy.
The Vande Mataram controversy, meanwhile, continues to fuel a sharp political debate over nationalism, patriotism and the role of political and social organisations in public life.
SOURCE : SIASAT
