RSS chief stresses need to unite Hindu society, pitches for 3 children in Hindu families
Lucknow (PTI): RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on Tuesday called for uniting and empowering the Hindu society, saying there is no threat but vigilance is necessary, and suggested that Hindu families should consider having at least three children.
He also said that infiltrators should be "detected, deleted and deported".
Addressing a social-harmony meeting at the Saraswati Shishu Mandir here, Bhagwat expressed concern over what he described as a declining Hindu population and said inducement- or coercion-based religious conversions should be stopped.
He also emphasised accelerating efforts to bring people back to the Hindu-fold and ensuring their welfare.
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"There is a need to unite and empower Hindus. There is no threat to us but vigilance is necessary," the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief said.
Raising concerns over infiltration, Bhagwat said infiltrators should be "detected, deleted and deported" and should not be provided employment.
He also said Hindu families should consider having at least three children, citing scientific opinions that societies with an average fertility rate of below three could disappear in the future.
Bhagwat said newly-married couples should be made aware of this and added that the purpose of marriage is to carry forward creation, not merely fulfilling one's own desires.
Bhagwat said a lack of harmony leads to discrimination and stressed that all citizens share one country and one motherland.
"The Sanatan thought is a philosophy of harmony," he said, adding that differences that have emerged over time must be addressed through understanding and practice.
Bhagwat said those who disagree should not be viewed as enemies and emphasised coordination over conflict.
He described "matrushakti" (women power) as the foundation of the household, saying women should not be seen as weak and should receive training in self-defence.
The RSS chief said the Indian tradition accords women a revered place and values nurturing qualities over physical appearance.
Responding to a question on University Grants Commission (UGC) guidelines, he said laws must be obeyed and if a law is flawed, there are constitutional ways to change it.
He said caste divisions should not become a cause of conflict and called for uplifting the disadvantaged with a sense of belonging.
Bhagwat said India would guide the world in the near future and that solutions to many global problems lie within the country's civilisational ethos.
He said regular community-level meetings should promote social harmony, remove misconceptions and address social issues, while extending support to the weaker sections of the society.
The RSS chief cautioned that some elements in the United States and China are working against India's social harmony, and called for vigilance and mutual trust.
Representatives from Sikh, Buddhist and Jain communities, along with organisations such as the Ramakrishna Mission, ISKCON and Art of Living Foundation, among others, attended the programme.
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Mamata accuses BJP of trying to 'rig' Bengal polls, alleges central forces acting at its behest
Kolkata (PTI): West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday accused the BJP of trying to "rig" the West Bengal assembly elections, alleging that central forces and election observers were acting at the behest of the saffron party.
The BJP, however, dismissed her allegations, accusing her of "trying to create confusion sensing public anger against the TMC".
Visiting several polling booths in her Bhabanipur assembly constituency where voting is underway, Banerjee alleged that democratic norms have been severely compromised by the authorities this assembly election.
The Bhabanipur assembly segment is Banerjee's political bastion, where she is locked in a prestige battle against Leader of the Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari, in what is being seen as a symbolic rematch of Nandigram, where he had defeated her in the 2021 assembly polls.
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"BJP wants to rig this election," she told reporters.
Stating that elections are held in West Bengal in a peaceful manner, Banerjee asked, "Is there goonda raj here?"
West Bengal has had a tradition of poll-related violence with the Calcutta High Court having ordered CBI investigations into post-poll violence after the 2021 assembly elections.
Alleging that TMC workers and leaders were facing atrocities at the hands of police and CAPF personnel, Banerjee said her party cadres "were ready to die".
The TMC supremo, who usually steps out of her Kalighat residence in the afternoon on polling day to cast her vote at Mitra Institution School, went out before 8 am and visited several polling stations in the constituency, including those in the Chetla area of south Kolkata.
She later sat outside a polling station at Chakraberia in Bhabanipur and spoke to reporters, alleging irregularities and accusing the BJP of trying to influence the polling process through central forces and observers.
"Several observers have come from outside and are acting as per the BJP's directions. People are supposed to cast their votes -- can voting take place like this?" Banerjee said.
She also alleged that all TMC party flags had been removed beforehand and claimed that outsiders were interfering with the polling process.
"They are not allowing the councillor of ward number 70 to step out. They are picking up all our boys. Abhishek and I stayed awake the entire night," she said.
Banerjee further claimed that some people from outside the state were trying to create disturbances in the constituency and sought immediate intervention from the Election Commission.
The BJP, however, dismissed her allegations, claiming that the ruling party was trying to create confusion after sensing public anger against it.
Adhikari said the CM will lose the election.
The LoP offered prayers at two temples in the constituency's Khidirpur area.
Adhikari said people are coming out in large numbers to vote, with the Election Commission making proper arrangements for ensuring free and fair election.
"Does not matter, she will lose," Adhikari told reporters about the TMC chief venturing out on polling day early in the morning in a departure from her practice of going out only in the afternoon to cast her vote.
The party's de facto second-in-command Abhishek Banerjee, on the other hand, asserted that the TMC will win with a higher number of seats than in 2021.
The Diamond Harbour MP, after casting his vote at Mitra Institution, accused the poll observers of highhandedness in different places.
"But these things will not matter, we will win by a higher number of seats this election," he told reporters.
Voting is underway in 142 constituencies in the second and final phase of the West Bengal assembly elections amid unprecedented security arrangements.
Polling began at 7 am with voters lining up outside booths across Kolkata, Howrah, North and South 24 Parganas, Nadia, Hooghly and Purba Bardhaman -- districts that together form the political and electoral core of the state.
The outcome of this phase is expected to be crucial as it covers south Bengal, considered the TMC's traditional stronghold, where the BJP is seeking major inroads.
Polling will continue till 6 pm.
The first phase of the assembly elections on April 23 had recorded a turnout of 93.19 per cent -- the highest ever in the state.
Counting of votes will take place on May 4.
