Mumbai, Aug 7 (IANS) The Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray on Friday questioned the ideological alignment between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its parent organisation, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), accusing the ruling political establishment of ‘suppressing’ youth protests while the RSS maintains an ambiguous stance.
The Thackeray camp, in an editorial in the party’s mouthpiece ‘Saamana’, criticised RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat’s decision to host an outreach session in Mumbai with Gen Z to understand youth unrest in the wake of the recent Jantar Mantar student demonstrations.
The editorial labelled the move ‘hypocritical’, pointing out that while Bhagwat seeks dialogue, the Central government has engaged in a heavy-handed police crackdown against student activists.
The editorial highlighted a severe contradiction within the Sangh Parivar, noting that while BJP leaders and affiliated groups have branded protesting students as “anti-national” and part of the “Tukde Tukde Gang”, the RSS leadership is attempting to project an image of mediation and open communication.
The Thackeray camp cited specific instances of alleged police harassment, pointing to youth leaders such as Riya Ahir, who was targeted by law enforcement after attempting to prevent the unlawful detention of fellow protesters in Mumbai. Despite public statements from the Prime Minister offering pardons to student protesters, it reported that police agencies under the Home Ministry continue to intimidate students and their families at university campuses and private residences.
Indian democracy is being transformed into an autocracy, “with constitutional institutions dismantled, national assets privatised, and human values eroded,” it said.
“Ideally, the RSS should have raised its voice against these trends. Instead, it remained silent while youth took to the streets to denounce authoritarianism. Is this stance deemed appropriate by Mohan Bhagwat?” asked the editorial.
Recalling the 1975 Emergency, when the RSS actively opposed bans on strikes, protests, and civil liberties, the editorial accused current RSS leadership of remaining silent while similar authoritarian measures are deployed against today’s youth.
The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena argued that any genuine outreach by the RSS chief must engage actual movement participants on the ground — particularly those injured during police lathi charges — rather than “curated gatherings of Sangh-affiliated youth groups”.
The editorial concluded by demanding that “Home Minister Amit Shah address Parliament regarding alleged police excesses and misbehaviour toward female protesters”, asserting that true resolution requires stopping false charges and “curbing state force rather than offering unsolicited sermons to the nation’s youth”.
–IANS
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