RSS chief says Manipur violence orchestrated, blames external forces

In his Vijayadashami address on Tuesday, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat said the Manipur violence was orchestrated and blamed “outside forces” for the situation in the northeastern state.

In the address delivered at the RSS headquarters at Nagpur’s Reshimbagh, his last before the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, Bhagwat cautioned RSS workers not to get provoked as political discourse could get increasingly intemperate in the run-up to the elections. “Never get provoked. Voters have by now seen everyone. They will choose the available best,” he said.

Bhagwat lauded the government for the successful hosting of the Group of 20 Summit, asked people to hold events across the country to celebrate the installation of the idol of Lord Ram at the Ayodhya temple on January 22, bemoaned how people “do not get a house on rent in ‘another’ locality”, and urged his audience to read B R Ambedkar’s last two speeches in the Constituent Assembly just like they read RSS founder K B Hedgewar.

The RSS was founded on Vijayada­shami in 1925, and its chief customarily addresses Sangh volunteers annually on the day. The following year, Bhagwat noted, the RSS will celebrate its centenary from 2025 to 2026.
In his 2018 address, the last before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Bhagwat had warned about the activities of “urban Maoists”, and on Tuesday, he said “cultural Marxists” and “woke” elements were using their influence in media and academia to spoil the country’s education and culture.

The RSS chief cautioned against attempts to garner votes by inflaming emotions ahead of the 2024 general elections. He asked people to vote and keep in mind the country’s unity, integrity, identity and development, and beware of those using “toolkits” that incite violence and create mutual mistrust and hatred.

On the ethnic strife in Manipur, Bhagwat said: “Meiteis and Kukis were living together for a long time there. It is a border state. Who benefits from such secessionism and internal conflict? Out­side forces also benefit. Were people from outside involved in what happened there?”

“Which foreign powers may be interested in taking advantage of unrest and instability in Manipur? Does the geopolitics of Southeast Asia also have a role in these events,” the RSS chief asked, commending Sangh workers who worked in Manipur to restore peace.

The RSS chief congratulated the government for hosting the G20 Summit. “Everyone witnessed Bharat’s genuine goodwill and diplomatic tact in getting the African Union accepted as a member,” he said. “By successfully holding the G20 Summit, our leadership has done a commendable job of firmly establishing Bharat as a major nation on the global stage,” Bhagwat said. He also spoke of conflicts in Ukraine and the Gaza Strip.