The political temperature in Karnataka is already on high due to Congress’s rhetoric against RSS. Now meanwhile, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge also gave a big statement on Friday. Kharge said that in his personal opinion RSS should be banned.
In fact, Kharge also hit back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi after attacking the party on the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. Also, he cited Patel’s remarks criticizing the RSS after the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi in 1948.
Responding to a question on banning the RSS, Kharge said, “This is my personal opinion, it should be done” as most of the issues and law-and-order problems are arising due to the BJP-RSS.
The Congress President said that today is the birth anniversary of Patel and the death anniversary of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. He said that these two great leaders – the ‘Iron Man’ and the ‘Iron Woman’ – made huge contributions to the country and strived to maintain unity.
“This is the history of the Congress and its contribution,” Kharge said while addressing a press conference in New Delhi.
Kharge cited a letter written by Patel to Syama Prasad Mukherjee in which the then Home Minister had said that the RSS created an environment which led to tragedies like the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi.
Kharge said that he always tried to create a rift between India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Patel, even though they had good relations and both admired each other.
Nehru praised Patel for shaping the unity of India and Patel described Nehru as a role model for the country.
Kharge’s comment came after Prime Minister Modi’s statement in which he had said that Sardar Patel wanted to merge the entire Kashmir with India, as he had done with other princely states, but the then Prime Minister Nehru did not allow this to happen.
Taking aim at the Congress, Modi said that the party has inherited the mentality of slavery from the British, who ruled India. He said that the country is erasing every trace of colonial mentality.
It is noteworthy that Patel, born in Nadiad, Gujarat in 1875, was an important figure in India’s freedom struggle. Known for his extraordinary leadership and unwavering commitment towards national integration, he is remembered as the “Iron Man of India”. He died in 1950.