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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

Bhagwat bats for culture over politics

Mohan Bhagwat, Sarsanghchalak, RSS during the lecture on the occasion of the centenary year of RSS at Nehru Centre Auditorium in Worli on Saturday. | Pic Bhushan Koyande Mumbai: On the centenary of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh its present (6 th ) Sarsanghchalak Dr. Mohan Madhukar Bhagwat termed the RSS as a civilizational movement dedicated to serving humanity, cultural unity and social organization rather than power, protest or politics. Addressing a centennial lecture series before a...

Bhagwat bats for culture over politics

Mohan Bhagwat, Sarsanghchalak, RSS during the lecture on the occasion of the centenary year of RSS at Nehru Centre Auditorium in Worli on Saturday. | Pic Bhushan Koyande Mumbai: On the centenary of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh its present (6 th ) Sarsanghchalak Dr. Mohan Madhukar Bhagwat termed the RSS as a civilizational movement dedicated to serving humanity, cultural unity and social organization rather than power, protest or politics. Addressing a centennial lecture series before a packed audience, the 75-year-old said that RSS runs more than 1.3 lakhs service activities all over the country encompassing education, healthcare, disaster relief and social welfare without accepting any kind of government funding. “We sustain these activities with the personal contributions of Swayamsevaks and the co-operation of society. The RSS had decided beforehand that apart from organizing the entire society, it has no other task. That work which facilitates the completion of all other good works and fulfils all noble goals, that work is the Sangh’s mission,” Dr. Bhagwat declared. This narrow but decisive role of the RSS from its inception in 1925, and the organisational works enable the fulfilment of every other national and social objective, and its self-driven social responsibility, he added. Rubbishing the notion that RSS was born as an ‘opposition to any group of ideology’, Dr. Bhagwat pointed out that the RSS did not emerge as a reaction, a protest platform, a publicity vehicle or to bid for power, but was formed for the long-term betterment of the ‘rashtra’ with emphasis on cultural unity. The RSS was not "against anyone" and did not work as a reaction to any incident, Bhagwat said, adding that its focus was supporting and strengthening positive efforts underway in the country. The Sangh was also not a paramilitary force even though it conducts route marches, and though its volunteers wield the lathi, it should not be seen as an "akhada" (wrestling club), Bhagwat said. Nor is the RSS involved in politics though some individuals with the Sangh background are active in political life, he added. He acknowledged India’s diversity in languages, food habits, religious practices, deities, rituals and regional differences, but said all these co-exist within a shared cultural framework. “There is one identity that unites us all and we call it a Hindu. It’s a broader cultural and civilisational term and not religious…, Bharat is not just a geographical entity, but represents a cultural attitude.” reiterated Dr. Bhagwat. The Sarsanghchalak also referred to the prevailing interpretation of ‘secularism’ (‘Dharma-nirpekshata’) and said it implies ‘indifference to religion’ which does not represent the country’s civilizational reality. Instead, Dr. Bhagwat suggested ‘Panth-nirpekshata’ or equal respect for all faiths as a more accurate expression in the Indian context, as “Bharat is a nation rooted in dharma representing ethical duty, social harmony and moral order rather than religious dogma”. The RSS chief emphasised how national strength flows from social cohesion and not coercion as real unity cannot be imposed by law or force, but must arise out of mutual respect, shared values and collective discipline, with service being the most effective tool bridging society and ideology. Referring to RSS founder Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, Bhagwat described the difficult circumstances of his childhood including the death of both his parents due to the plague at age 13 and the financial hardship he suffered subsequently. Hedgewar actively participated in various movements during the freedom struggle, including the Vande Mataram agitation in his school days, Bhagwat said. When he cleared the matriculation examination with a first class, some people in Nagpur raised funds to send him to Calcutta (Kolkata) for medical education, where he came in contact with revolutionary groups, Bhagwat said. Recalling an anecdote from that period, Bhagwat said Hedgewar operated under the code name "Koken", inspired by the name of a person called Kokenchandra. Once a police team which had arrived to arrest Kokenchandra instead detained Hedgewar, an incident documented in a book by Rash Behari Bose, he said. Bollywood bows for #RSS100 Bollywood mega-star Salman Khan, along with film-maker Subhash Ghai, writer-poet Prashoon Joshi, singer Adnan Sami and actress Ashwini Bhave were among the dignitaries who attended the centenary celebrations of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). They attentively listened to RSS Sarsanghchalak Dr. Mohan M. Bhagwat as he enlightened the organisation’s 100 year long journey, its ethos, mottos and service to the nation without hankering for political power, at the Nehru Centre. As Khan arrived, there was quite a flutter with many people whipping out their mobiles to click photos or videos, but he was quickly whisked in by the security personnel.

‘How there was no blood if she fell from 14th floor?’

Updated: Mar 21, 2025

Disha Salian’s father’s allegations against Aaditya Thackeray hits up politics

Disha Salian

Mumbai: Satish Salian, the father of a celebrity manager Disha Salian, has raised several questions regarding her suspicious death in his petition to the Bombay High Court.


“Overall, looking at the entire investigation, I think it is murder,” Salian told Republic TV. “Because a person's body falls from the 14th floor, but still there is not a single injury visible on that person's body. There is no injury anywhere on the head, so how can this happen? We need to think about this. Even if a body falls from the 14th floor, how can that body remain clean?"


Salian produced photographs and videos of Disha’s dead body for the first time since her death on June 8, 2020. Her head and face are seen clean without any injury mark. In their investigation, the Mumbai Police had concluded that she had jumped from her 14th floor apartment in Malad.


Salian said, “There was no pressure on me from anyone. However, I was convinced that way. Also, I had faith that Disha’s friends who were present at the party on that night would never lie about what happened. Also, the police had told us at that time that it was a suicide. We had trusted the police then.”


He said then Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar had come to his house and convinced him that Disha had ended her life.


Salian’s lawyer Nilesh Ojha said from the first days of the incident, Satish Salian had the same question that not a single drop of blood was seen after falling from the 14th floor. Also, not a single drop of blood was found on the clothes. “The most important thing is that when Disha Salian's body was handed over to her family, there was no injury on her body. Then how come there was no injury after falling from the floor of the building? This is the question,” said Ojha.


Ojha, told ANI, “During the murder, Uddhav Thackeray's government was there (in Maharashtra), and the accused was his son Aaditya Thackeray. The corrupt police officials tried to cover up the case. After 2.5 years, Shinde's government came, and Fadnavis was the Home Minister. This matter has not come all of a sudden.”


He further added, “On 12th January 2024, a written complaint was filed accusing Aaditya Thackeray, Sooraj Pancholi and others of gang rape. FIR was not registered for more than one year. The affidavit filed by Aaditya Thackeray stated lies that he was given a clean chit by the CBI in the case. There is also proof that Anil Deshmukh didn't want any action (on Aaditya Thackeray).”


As this happened, Ojha said that Disha's father approached him to file the petition. "Nothing happened, but the conversations around it made Disha Salian's father realise that he had been lied to, and he came to us. After that, his petition was drafted and filed," he said.


Demanding that the police officials who failed to register an FIR be penalised, Ojha said that action must also be taken against the SIT official as per the Supreme Court's guidelines on rape and murder cases. Otherwise, the concerned police officials must be penalised as per the relevant sections of IPC. In this case, they have failed to register a case in over a year. This is a serious matter, and action must be taken against the SIT official, he said.


"The affidavit filed by Aaditya Thackeray stated lies that he was given a clean chit by the CBI in the Disha Salian case...Anil Deshmukh also didn't want any action (on Aaditya Thackeray)," Ojha added.


Reacting to Salian's plea, Kishori Pednekar called it a conspiracy. “Someone is behind it, and there is a conspiracy. How come this matter has come under the spotlight after more than four years? The CID conducted an enquiry, there is already an SIT (formed to probe the matter),” Pednekar told PTI.


“I was surprised how come this (Salian) issue was not raised in the last 2-3 sessions. There is nothing new in it as this issue has been raised repeatedly in the House in the past. There is no substance in this issue. But if politics is being done in such a bad way then it will hurt everyone. I want to tell these people that if you want to turn falsehoods into truth, then it will also boomerang on you.”

Uddhav Thackeray, Chief, Shiv Sena (UBT)


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