Former Karnataka CM and JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy continued his attack on the RSS on Wednesday, October 6, and said that the present RSS cannot be compared to the RSS that existed 30-40 years ago. “This RSS is preaching to loot the government treasury to the party leaders,” he alleged. On Tuesday, he had questioned how 646 candidates from a single IAS training institute got selected to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).
"I am not against any organisation. I am only saying the reality. People claim that RSS workers have done door-to-door campaigns, built hospitals and schools. If it was true, why did so many people lose their lives not being able to get treatment at hospitals? Don't they have any shame? BJP ministers in Karnataka do not have the liberty to give advertisements to the media. Keshava Krupa (known as RSS headquarters in Bengaluru) decides on it," he alleged.
Kumaraswamy added that as many as 4,000 IAS and IPS officers are allegedly RSS workers. They are trained by RSS and are discharging duties on the wishes of the Sangh, he said. He defended his statement that these things are mentioned in books that are in the public domain.
"The country is not ruled by an elected government. It is being ruled by RSS and it is gradually taking the executive into its fold. IPS and IAS officers with RSS mindsets are being recruited. The country is being taken into the era of 'Manusmriti'. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai are puppets in the hands of RSS," he maintained.
Hitting back at Kumaraswamy, National General Secretary CT Ravi said that UPSC selections are not made based on alliances. He indirectly referred to allegations against JD(S) in selecting candidates to Karnataka Administrative Services (KAS) based on the candidate's decision to marry daughters of JD(S) sympathizer officers and followers.
BJP Vice President BY Vijayendra has also reacted that Kumaraswamy should have spoken to his father HD Deve Gowda who has praised the RSS.
Prabhu Chauhan, Minister for Animal Husbandry said that if not for RSS, India would have become Pakistan a long time ago. "Kumaraswamy is jealous of BJP which is ruling both at the Centre and the state. The statements do not suit the dignity of a former chief minister," he stated.
Minister for Panchayat Raj, KS Eshwarappa alleged that Kumaraswamy wanted to please the minority vote bank. “RSS is constructively working on nationalism. The organisation has not only helped IAS and IPS officers, but it also helped one and all,” he said.
Minister for Water Resources Govind Karjol maintained that Kumaraswamy's statements are aimed at getting publicity. He should not put RSS in a bad light, he said.
Kumaraswamy, when asked about whether he is trying to please minorities, said that BJP is aggressively pursuing the policy of pleasing Hindus through Hindutva. "What rights do they have to question us on minority appeasement," he quipped.
Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge endorsed Kumaraswamy’s statement on Wednesday saying RSS was "infiltrating" all sectors including education and his long fight against the organisation cost him his Lok Sabha seat during the 2019 parliamentary polls.
"They (RSS) are infiltrating everywhere, even in education. Many officers are directly recruited, amending the rule and that much (people) are deprived of reservation...." Kharge said in response to a question.
Speaking to reporters here, he said he has been fighting RSS and its ideology from the age of 15-16, and it is one of the reasons for his loss in 2019 Lok Sabha election from Gulbarga seat.
"We are fighting against RSS, we don't want to hide it. We will fight and that's why I lost my election also. RSS is not pro-poor, it is not for social justice. They believe in 'Manusmriti', read Golwalkar Guruji, the second Sarsanghchalak of RSS," he said.
The senior Congress leader was responding to a question on JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy's statement referring to a book that RSS, as part of its hidden agenda, has created a team of bureaucrats in this country, who are now placed in various institutions.