Bengaluru, Nov 1 (IANS) Union Minister of State for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and Labour and Employment Shobha Karandlaje, commenting on AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge’s demand to ban the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), stated that Kharge was making such remarks under pressure from Sonia Gandhi and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.

Speaking to reporters at the BJP headquarters in Bengaluru on Saturday, the Union Minister said, “I respect Mallikarjun Kharge; he is a senior politician both at the state and national levels with many years of experience. However, he is unable to think independently because of the influence of one family in his party. In his 50 years of political life, Mallikarjun Kharge had never made any statement against the RSS,” she noted.

She further said, “After listening to Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, Kharge has now started issuing statements against the RSS and is demanding a ban on it. Kharge ji, you must remember — what former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru could not do, what Indira Gandhi could not do — will you be able to do it?” she challenged.

Taking a dig at Kharge and the Congress leadership, Shobha said, “What powers do you have in your hands? What powers does Rahul Gandhi possess? He is merely the Leader of the Opposition and is unable to discharge his duties in that role as well. Your party ruled this country for more than 50 years. You were in power at the Centre, and during the UPA government, you yourself were a Union Minister, yet you never spoke against the RSS.”

“Why are you raising your voice now? It is because you want to indulge in appeasement politics to please a particular community. That is why Kharge is talking about banning the RSS. But this will never happen. What was not possible for former Prime Ministers Nehru and Indira Gandhi will not be possible for you. The RSS will continue to function,” she asserted.

“From children to elders, all of us are associated with the RSS. You may not tolerate it, but we will not care and will continue to march forward. The RSS exists to protect the country, preserve our culture, and uphold Hindutva. The RSS is there to safeguard Sanatana Dharma, and we will demonstrate that through our actions,” Shobha added.

Mallikarjun Kharge’s son, Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister Priyank Kharge, has stirred a controversy in Karnataka by writing a letter to the CM demanding a ban on the RSS activities in public places.

He wrote another letter urging the government to initiate action against government officers over their links with the RSS. In turn, the BJP state unit had released a photo of Mallikarjun Kharge attending an RSS event in Bengaluru. However, Priyank Kharge maintained that his father had gone to the venue, in the capacity of Home Minister of Karnataka, to issue a warning to the organisers.

The Karnataka government, without naming the RSS, has issued an order making it mandatory for all private organisations to obtain permission from the authorities. The High Court bench has stayed the order.

–IANS

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