NEW DELHI: Vice-President and Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar on Wednesday backed the RSS, the ruling BJP’s ideological mentor, saying the organisation had unimpeachable credentials and it was unconstitutional to suggest that its members could not participate in India’s growth story.
Dhankhar’s remarks came after Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge objected to the Chairman interrupting a Samajwadi Party member from mentioning RSS unfavourably during question hour.
The question being discussed was the poor handling of entrance exams by the NTA and SP’s Lalji Suman said, “For them (the government), the sole criteria for judging anyone’s merit is whether he is an RSS member or not.”
When Dhankhar asked Suman not to politicise the exam issue, Kharge remarked that the chair could interject if MPs transgress rules and that none had been transgressed by Suman.
At this point, Dhankhar gave a ruling, saying, “I hereby rule that RSS is an organisation that has full constitutional rights to participate in the development journey of this nation. This organisation bears unimpeachable credentials and comprises people deeply committed to serving the nation selflessly. To take exception that a member of this organisation cannot participate in the development journey of this nation is not only unconstitutional but beyond rules.”
The Rajya Sabha Chairman went on to say it was “soothing to note that RSS has been contributing to national welfare, culture and everyone should take pride in any organisation acting like this.”
“If I take exception like this, it is indicative of undemocratic situations and such comments (as made by Suman) are antithetical to the Preamble of the Constitution…We are doing great disservice to the nation and the Constitution by taking such a divisive stance,” Dhankhar added.
He said people were increasingly engaging in divisive activities and this needed to be deprecated by all.
“This is a pernicious design, a sinister mechanism to run down the growth of the country. Attempts are being made to tarnish our constitutional institutions…I have taken into consideration constitutional essence, rules of the House, while making my ruling,” the Chairman said.
He said any observation (as Suman made) is “not only offensive to the Constitution but also to the growth trajectory of the nation.”