Rajya Sabha Chairman, Jagdeep Dhankhar on July 31 reiterated his assertion in the house that “RSS has unimpeachable credentials”. During question hour in Rajya Sabha, member Ramji Lal Suman from Samajwadi Party (SP) while speaking about National Testing Agency (NTA) chairperson said ” …. इनके लिए व्यक्ति के नापने का मापदंड कोई और नहीं है, सबसे पहला मापदंड ये है की वो आरएसएस का है की नहीं है … ” To this Chairman objected “…….I have said so on the floor of the house, we cannot go in a manner to make it political….please ask your pointed supplementary…”
Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge objected to Dhankhar’s comments and said the chairman cannot object unless the member transgressed the rules of business. To the objections raised by the Leader of Opposition, Mallikarjun Kharge, Chairman responded “ The Leader of the Opposition has in a sense indicated to the Chair that I have transgressed the rules by objecting to the member. I am therefore obliged to respond to it. Honourable Leader of the Opposition says that I can intervene when there is transgression of rules. If a member is speaking within the rules, I should not intervene, I agree with that.
But here the member was not transgressing rules, he was trampling the constitution of India. For this reason, an organisation I have said is fully entitled, RSS is an organisation which is a global think tank of the highest order….. I will not permit honourable member to single out an organisation which is doing national service…..”
“….Under part 3 of the constitution, this organisation RSS has all the rights to contribute for national growth, for national development……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, comprises of people who are deeply committed to serving the nation selflessly. To take exception that a member of this organisation cannot participate in development journey of the nation is not only unconstitutional, but beyond the rules…..”, Shri Dhankhar underscored.
“…..Every organisation associated with development of the nation should come forward. It is soothing to note, it is wholesome to note, that RSS as an organisation has been contributing for national welfare, our culture, and everyone should, as a matter of fact, take pride in any organisation which is acting in this manner……And before that, let me tell you, honourable members, if we take exception like this, it is indicative of undemocratic situations. It is antithetical to the preamble of our constitution. We are doing great disservice to the nation and the constitution by taking such divisive stance….”, he added
“…I increasingly find that people are engaging into divisive activities. This is a pernicious design, a sinister mechanism to run down the growth of the country. I have reflected on several occasions that attempts being made within the country and outside to taint, tarnish, and demean our institutions, constitutional institutions, is to be deprecated by all of us. If we fail to do it, our silence on this occasion will resonate in our ears for years to come. I have thoughtfully, after taking constitutional essence, constitutional spirit, rules of the house, ruled that any such observation is not only offensive to constitution, but offensive to the growth trajectory of the nation. Any organization, including RSS, is duly entitled to contribute to the journey of this nation..”, Dhankhar stated.
Earlier also, Kharge had made derogatory remarks against the RSS in the Rajya Sabha and it was then also that Dhankar had come down heavily at him when the former had said on the floor of the house that the RSS ideology was dangerous for the country. Kharge had also said that RSS and the BJP had destroyed all the institutions. In response, Jagdeep Dhankar hit back at Kharge and stated that RSS was an international acclaimed oragnisation which worked for the welfare and development of the country. Moreover, he also warned that his remarks would be expunged from the records.
