3 weeks ago
RSS Chief Says Government Erred in Delaying Youth Protest Talks
In India, a big organisation called the RSS is like a big brother to the ruling party, the BJP.
The leader of the RSS, Mohan Bhagwat, is like a wise teacher who sometimes tells the ruling party what it is doing wrong.
Recently, students went to a place called Jantar Mantar to protest because they were upset about problems with exams.
Bhagwat said the government waited too long to talk to them, and that talking to people who are upset is the right thing to do.
He also said that people who protest are not enemies of the country, they usually just have a problem that needs fixing.
This is not the first time the RSS has reminded the government to listen to people, during big farmer protests a few years ago, the RSS also asked the government to find a middle ground.
After the 2024 elections, the ruling party did not win as many seats as before, so it had to work with partner parties.
Bhagwat also said that people who love people of the same gender should be treated with respect and given their own space.
The article explains that the RSS guides the BJP like a guardian, telling it when it needs to change course.
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat said the government erred in delaying engagement with youths protesting at Jantar Mantar over exam paper leaks, acknowledging "Kami to rahi hai" (there were shortcomings).
Bhagwat called protest a legitimate form of democratic dialogue and cautioned against branding young protesters as anti-national.
He said Gen Z protesters face genuine problems, including concerns over India's education system, and that solutions require engagement rather than dismissal.
The remarks fit a pattern of the RSS signalling discomfort with the BJP's handling of sensitive issues, following the BJP's 2024 Lok Sabha setback when its tally fell from 303 to 240 seats.
Bhagwat also diverged from the BJP's stance on social issues, saying in January 2023 that homosexuality is a biological reality and that LGBTQ people deserve dignity and private space.
- Who
- Mohan Bhagwat, chief of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the BJP-led government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Gen Z students protesting at Jantar Mantar.
- What
- Bhagwat said the government committed a mistake in delaying engagement with youth protesters and urged dialogue, with the intervention seen as the RSS signalling discomfort with the BJP's handling of sensitive political issues and nudging it toward course correction.
- Where
- Mumbai, where Bhagwat addressed the youth event, and Jantar Mantar, where students are protesting; the article also references farmers' protests at Delhi's borders during 2020-21.
- When
- Bhagwat spoke on Thursday at a youth event in Mumbai, amid the current student agitation over exam paper leaks and following the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
- Why
- Because the RSS regards protest as legitimate democratic dialogue and believes the government must respond to genuine problems, such as concerns over India's education system, rather than dismiss young protesters as anti-national.
Dialogue and inclusion
Order and self-sufficiency
Handling of Jantar Mantar youth protests
Dialogue and inclusion
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat said a mistake was committed in delaying engagement with protesters, that protest is legitimate democratic dialogue, and that young people with genuine grievances should not be dismissed or branded anti-national.
Order and self-sufficiency
The BJP-led government delayed initiating dialogue with the students protesting exam paper leaks, with Bhagwat having to caution against treating the young protesters as anti-national rather than as people facing a real problem.
LGBTQ rights
Dialogue and inclusion
Bhagwat argued in January 2023 that homosexuality is a biological reality rooted in Indian civilisational traditions and that LGBTQ people deserve dignity and their own private space in society.
Order and self-sufficiency
Senior BJP leader Rajnath Singh opposed decriminalising homosexuality in 2013, describing it as "unnatural".
RSS-BJP relationship after the 2024 election setback
Dialogue and inclusion
The RSS sees itself as the BJP's parent organisation and ideological guardian; Bhagwat's post-election remarks on a true sevak not being arrogant were read as a reminder that electoral strength has not altered the ideological hierarchy.
Order and self-sufficiency
Then BJP president J P Nadda said the BJP had become organisationally self-sufficient and no longer depended on the RSS the way it once had.
Key facts
- RSS chief
- Mohan Bhagwat
- Key remark
- "Kami to rahi hai" (there were shortcomings) on delayed engagement with Jantar Mantar protesters
- Protest issue
- Student agitation over exam paper leaks
- BJP 2024 Lok Sabha seats
- 240 seats, down from 303, forcing reliance on NDA allies to form a government
- Previous pressure point
- Farmers' agitation (2020-21) against three farm laws, which Prime Minister Modi repealed ten months after RSS calls for a middle ground
- Bhagwat's LGBTQ stance (Jan 2023)
- Homosexuality is a biological reality; LGBTQ people deserve dignity and their own private space
- 2013 BJP stance
- Rajnath Singh opposed decriminalising homosexuality, describing it as "unnatural"
- Context
- Remarks came after then BJP president J P Nadda said the BJP had become organisationally self-sufficient and less dependent on the RSS
Quotes
Mohan Bhagwat
RSS chief and Sarsanghchalak
“Kami to rahi hai. When something that should not happen, happens, then it is evident some mistake has been committed. It should have been done. We should also see that if Gen Z is protesting, it is not protesting because it is opposed to us. It is protesting because it is facing some problem. The solution to that problem must be found.”
indianexpress.com
“A true sevak operates within decorum… he does not get attached, is not arrogant that this has been done by me. Only he can be called a sevak.”
indianexpress.com










