After the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)-trained pracharak (propagator) Nathuram Godse pumped three bullets in to the lean chest of ‘Father of the Nation’, Mahatma Gandhi, because Gandhi held that the nation belongs to people of all religions, Godse and his parent organisations, RSS-Hindu Mahasabha held that the nation is only for Hindus.

A hate propaganda was spread against the Indian national movement and Gandhi, leading to his assassination at point blank range. Due to this Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel, the Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minster, banned the RSS. “All their speeches were full of communal poison,” he wrote after banning the Sangh in 1948. As a final result of this poison, the “country had to suffer the sacrifice of the invaluable life of Gandhiji." The ban on RSS was lifted after it gave an undertaking that it will have a written constitution and will work only as a cultural organisation.

As a matter of fact, RSS became a “supra political” organisation in the garb of culture. It had already founded Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and was later instrumental in the formation of Bharatiya Jansangh, the predecessor of Bharatiya Janata Party or BJP, which is currently in power at the Centre and many state governments.

The RSS claims that it is run by money from ‘Guru Dakshina’, collected on the day of Dasara festival. The Income Tax tribunal somehow has exempted this source of income from taxation. However, RSS has been spending infinite money in its programmes, running shakhas (branches) even on public land. The expenses involved in its route marches are not disclosed. The value of the RSS head office in Delhi is reported to be above Rs 100 crore. All these massive expenditures are above State scrutiny.

This ‘cultural organisation cover’ was accepted by the State and people at large at face value and it has been merrily expanding itself to lakhs of shakhas and lakhs of swayamsevaks. Nehru had understood the nature of RSS quite early. But till a few years ago no political party, including the Indian National Congress (INC), raised any questions on the issues such as how this organisation has been enjoying a free ride, ignoring the laws and morality of the State.

But better late than never, from the past few years, the INC and Rahul Gandhi, in particular, has been raising logical and legal questions on RSS. Rahul Gandhi had stated that it was RSS people who had killed Mahatma Gandhi, for which he is facing a legal case.

In the line of confronting RSS, now Priyank Kharge, the Home Minister of Karnataka, has ask RSS to get itself registered and be accountable to the State of India.

In a letter (June 13, 2026) to RSS supremo, Mohan Bhagwat, Kharge sought details on the organisation’s legal status, finances, office-bearers and tax compliance. The Karnataka Home Minister also details and type of activities, which has RSS officially claimed that it had over 60,000 shakhas and crores of swayamsevaks across India and abroad.

Kharge outlined in this in his publicly released communication, saying that registration was not simply a legal requirement but also a moral issue. He wrote, “It is precisely because of this scale, influence and reach that the RSS must be held to the highest standards of transparency, accountability and constitutional compliance.”

In response to this letter, the RSS Sarsanghchalak, Mohan Bhagwat, said that he was ignoring the letter and would not reply to it. This smacks of Bhagwat thinking that he and his organisation are above the law and Indian Constitution.

As such, RSS does not believe in the Indian Constitution. Three days after the Indian Constitution was implemented, the RSS mouthpiece, Organiser, in its editorial, stated that this Constitution coming from the Indian Constituent Assembly and drafted by Babasaheb Ambedkar was not fit for our country as the glorious values of Indian holy books were not there. RSS chief Rajendra Singh had said that it should be scrapped.

K. Sudarshan, another RSS chief, went on to say that this Constitution was based on Western values, so it should be replaced by the Constitution based on an Indian holy book. Changing the Indian Constitution was one of the undercurrents of BJP’s slogan of ‘400 paar’ in the 2024 general elections.

Bhagwat’s feeling that his organisation is above the Constitution may also be stemming from the fact that though he does not hold any official position in the government of India, he enjoys security on par with the the Prime Minister.

In response to Priyank Kharge, Bhagwat said, “We are not secretive; we are working on open ground. We are calling people and telling them about us. This is politics, and all kinds of gimmicks are being tried… Hindu Dharma is not registered, and many other entities are not registered.” So, did they discuss the demolition of Babri Mosque in the open?

One recalls that the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) recently recommended that the US government impose targeted sanctions on RSS. The proposed measures include freezing the organisation's assets and denying visas to its members.

One of the arguments proffered by Bhagwat for non-registering is that even Hindu religion is not registered! This statement equating Hinduism with RSS is an insult to Hindu religion in a way. Hinduism has many streams of thought-- Nath, Tantra, Shaiva, Siddhanta and Bhakti. The Hinduism which RSS projects is Brahmanism, the one based on caste and gender hierarchy. This argument does not hold water in the least.

The surprise is not that the demand for registration of RSS is coming up. What is surprising is why this demand did not come up earlier. Many officials sympathetic to Hindu nationalist ideology are there to protect the RSS. But the simple rule of donations and expenditure needs to be the major reason for registration. Similarly, political activities in the name of culture need to be admitted. Also, how RSS is violating the commitments it gave while requesting for lifting of ban need to be kept in mind.

The time has come to give importance to the Indian Constitution and Indian nationalism and demand registration of not only RSS but all other organisations fulfilling such conditions.


The author is a former Professor of Biomedical Engineering at IIT Bombay and writes on political and social issues. The views expressed are personal.