The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is reportedly facing trouble from its own employees, as the management of 'Organiser' and 'Panchjanya’, the official English and Hindi publications of the Hindu organisation have shot off letters to RSS chief Mohan Bhagawat asking for better compensation
According to a report in Scroll, the managements of the magazine protested against Bharat Prakashan (Delhi) Limited, which runs the two publications, but said that a fear of retribution has forced them to keep their rebellion extremely guarded.
The report says:
Instead of publicly venting their grievances or taking legal recourse, they have sought RSS chief Mohan Bhagawat’s intervention for the resolution of issues they have been agitating against. In a letter written to Bhagawat, these employees have pointed out that they didn’t mind working on low wages – sometimes even getting their salaries in bits and parts – when the financial condition of the publications was not good.
The main complaints that the magazine employees mentioned in the letter dated December 2, are that they were underpaid and that their senior employees were forced to resign. The employees also threatened legal action if the current trend continued.
A senior editorial member of the Organiser also told Scroll, "The advertisement situation as well as the circulation of both the RSS organs have improved dramatically after the formation of the Narendra Modi government. The present management of Bharat Prakash that began functioning after the formation of the government is discriminating against the old employees, those who worked at very low wages during the bad days of the Organiser and the Panchjanya."
RSS reportedly decided to start a publishing centre in Lucknow known as Rashtra Dharma Prakashan in 1947 on August 15. Its first publication was Rashtra Dharma, a monthly magazine. Later on, Panchjanya, a Hindi weekly, was started in January 1948 under the editorship of Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The Organizer was also launched during this time.
Last month, an article titled ‘Kerala: God’s own country or Godless country’, in Organiser snowballed into a huge controversy in Kerala. The article authored by M Surendranath, a lawyer and law lecturer from Mumbai, had drawn criticism from politicians and common people.
Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy himself released a statement asking the RSS magazine to withdraw the article on Kerala.