Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], August 16 (ANI): Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge on Sunday hit out at BJP General Secretary BL Santhosh's remarks regarding RSS registration, asserting that the existence of an organisation is not the issue, but the failure to enforce accountability over an ideological organisation is an issue.
In a post on X, Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge asserted that a century-old organisation claiming enormous national reach should be able to answer questions regarding its legal status, its assets, and the legal framework under which it receives donations, declaring that history cannot be a substitute for legal transparency.
"Existence is not the issue. Accountability is. If the RSS needs no registration to "establish its existence", then tell the country: What exactly is its legal status? Who legally constitutes the RSS? Who owns its assets? In whose name are its bank accounts operated? Under what framework are donations received and accounted for? Where are its audited accounts and statutory disclosures? A century old organisation claiming enormous national reach should be able to answer these elementary questions. "We exist" is not an answer to "Who are you accountable to?" And history cannot be a substitute for legal transparency. In a constitutional democracy, the larger and more influential an organisation becomes, the greater the case for transparency, not the lesser," said Kharge.
The Karnataka Minister further emphasised that no one doubts the existence of the RSS, stating that the Karnataka government is merely asking under which law and legal framework the organisation functions.
''Dearest Santosh Ji, Nobody is questioning whether the RSS exists. The question is: under what law does it exist and under what legal identity does it function?....So yes, Mr. Santosh, nobody doubts that the RSS exists. The question is why an organisation that claims to shape the destiny of Bharath is so reluctant to clearly establish its legal identity and public accountability," added Kharge.
Priyank Kharge's remarks came after BJP national general secretary (organisation) B L Santhosh dismissed demands for RSS registration, claiming the organisation does not depend on legal paperwork to establish its presence.
Addressing an 'Akhand Bharat Sankalp Day' event organised by the Hindu Jagarana Vedike, BJP General Secretary B L Santhosh dismissed Priyank Kharge's calls to register the RSS, noting that the organisation stood with Hindus during Partition without formal registration. He further asserted that registration does not dictate the existence of the RSS, stating that it functions on the faith of millions of people. (ANI)
"Existence is not the issue. Accountability is:" Priyank Kharge on BJP leader GL Santhosh's 'RSS does not need registration' remark
