'Untouchability a sin': PM Modi praises RSS leaders for their fight against against discrimination

PM Modi was the chief guest at an event to mark the organisation’s 100th-anniversary at the Dr Ambedkar International Centre in New Delhi.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said untouchability is one of the main problems of Hindu community and termed it a “sin”.

Speaking at its centenary celebrations on Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised those who had led the Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh (RSS) over its 100-year journey.

The PM said from its founder Dr Keshav Baliram Hedgewar till incumbent RSS chief Dr Mohan Bhagwat, every Sarsanghchalak, had fought against discrimination and untouchability.

“…Guruji took the spirit of ‘Na Hindu patito bhavet (Every Hindu is one family)’ forward… Pujya Balasaheb Devvrat ji…used to say ‘If untouchability is not a sin, there is no sin in the world’…Rajju Bhaiyya ji and Sudershan ji too, as Sarsanghchalaks, took this feeling forward. The present Sarsanghchalak, Honourable Mohan Bhagwat-ji, too has put a clear target of unity for society to achieve, and lit its flame from village to village,” he said.

PM Modi also highlighted the contribution of the Sangh in nation-building and said it reached every corner of the country with the goal of fostering harmony by removing divisions of caste or creed and spreading the message of an inclusive society.

"The Sangh has fought against the atrocities of the British. Their only interest has always been love towards the nation," PM Modi said, adding that Sangh volunteers gave shelter to freedom fighters and its leaders were also jailed during the freedom struggle.

The prime minister said there have been numerous attempts to crush the spirit of the RSS by levelling allegations and registering false cases.

"The RSS has never been bitter, despite attempts to make false cases against them, attempts to ban them, and other challenges, because we are part of society where we accept both the good and the bad," he said, in an apparent reference to the ban on the RSS after the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi.

PM Modi said even the then RSS chief Madhav Golwalkar was falsely implicated in a case and sent to jail.

"Yet, when he came out, he said with calm wisdom: 'At times, the tongue may get caught under the teeth, but we do not break teeth'," the prime minister said.

He said every 'swayamsevak' has unflinching trust in democracy and constitutional institutions, which gave them strength when faced with challenges. "When Emergency was imposed, this trust gave strength to every swayamsevak to face it," he said.

The prime minister also released a special postage stamp and a commemorative coin to mark the centenary of the RSS.