– Mohammed Atherulla Shariff
Bengaluru, March 14: A better-late-than-never-like situation was witnessed at Freedom Park here when some erstwhile members of the Sangh Parivar shed light on the ideologies of their former organizations, claiming that the Sangh organizations propagate animosity and deceit.
Speaking at a programme organized by Jagrita Karnataka Sangathana, MG Hegde and Lakshmesh Gabbaladka Sulya stressed on the ‘exclusionary agenda’ of the RSS and BJP. “They deviate starkly from the core tenets of Hinduism,” they observed.
The former Sangh members also spoke of a ‘profound misalignment’ of the ideologies with the fundamental principles of their religion, promoting them to disassociate from the organizations.
They also pointed out the inherent ideological conflict within the organization. “Hatred towards Ambedkar and Gandhi is ingrained in the blood of the RSS personalities,” remarked Sudhir Kumar Murali, a senior lawyer and former RSS leader.
Hegde and Gabbaladka emphasized that the RSS fails to represent the diverse fabric of Indian society and excludes women, workers and farmers from its narrative.
The exploitation of religious symbols like Rama by RSS to incite hatred against certain groups was also criticized. Karnataka’s rich heritage spanning centuries has long upheld the principles of humanity and equality as preached by figures like Basavanna and Kanakadasal, they said.
The former Sangh members underscored the need to embrace diversity while advocating a broader interpretation of Hinduism.
The nationalism propagated by RSS is an attack on the diversity of the country, said Adarsh Iyer. In this attack, we are losing our roots, culture and identity, so together we can proclaim our identity in the mad rush of ‘nationalism’, he underlined.
Another important personality Sundar GV said, “This is not a fight against RSS and BJP rather we are trying to revive the culture that poet Kuvempu dreamt of for Karnataka. This culture includes everyone regardless of caste or religion. Basavanna dedicated his life to promoting compassion as the basis of religion but today we forget compassion and divide the society, he emphasized.
