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    In a back-to-back attack against the right-wing organisation, Jairam Ramesh quoted a speech of Patel calling RSS activities a clear threat to the State. File Photo.

    Jairam Ramesh attacks RSS on centenary using Gandhi, Patel quotes

    Senior leader Jairam Ramesh cited historical evidence showing Gandhi and Sardar Patel denigrating the right-wing organisation

    The Federal
    2 Oct 2025 4:08 PM IST  (Updated:2025-10-02 10:40:48)

    In a scathing attack on the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) on its centenary anniversary, senior Congress MP Jairam Ramesh on Thursday (October 2) cited excerpts from a book penned by Pyarelal, a close aide of Mahatma Gandhi, claiming that the iconic leader had described the Sangh as a "communal body with a totalitarian outlook".

    In back-to-back attacks against the right-wing organisation, the Congress leader also quoted a speech of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel condemning the activities of the Sangh in the country and calling them a clear threat to the state.

    The stark criticism came a day after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi participated in the centenary celebrations of the RSS and praised it for its "continued work on the principle of nation first."

    Also Read: RSS at 100: How relevant is the Sangh in Modi era? | Talking Sense With Srini

    'A communal body with a totalitarian outlook'

    In a post on X on Thursday, Ramesh, who is the Congress's general secretary in-charge communications, said Pyarelal was one of Gandhi's closest aides, being part of his personal staff for almost three decades, and became his secretary after the death of Mahadev Desai in 1942.

    "Pyarelal's books on Mahatma Gandhi have become standard reference works. In 1956, he published the first volume of his book 'Mahatma Gandhi: The Last Phase', brought out by Navajivan Publishing House, Ahmedabad. It carried a long introduction by the President of India, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, and an endorsement by the Vice President, Dr S. Radhakrishnan," Ramesh said. The second volume appeared two years later, he added.

    "On page 440 of the second volume, Pyarelal writes of a conversation between Mahatma Gandhi and one of his colleagues in which the Father of the Nation describes the RSS as a 'communal body with a totalitarian outlook'," Ramesh said, adding that this conversation took place on September 12, 1947.

    Also Read: RSS at 100: Hindutva is an ideological camouflage for its Brahminical core

    Patel condemned RSS

    Ramesh, in another post, recalled the time when former Union Home Minister Sardar Patel condemned the Sangh's activities, emphasising that India should be a secular state. Ramesh shared a screenshot of a report which detailed Patel's speech in the Congress session in Jaipur on December 16, 1948, citing the excerpts from The Collected Works of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Vol 13, edited by PN Chopra.

    "Patel expressed himself forcefully and emphasised that India must be a secular State. That was what the Congress had fought for, laboured and sacrificed all these years. He warned that any organisation which sought to supplant the national flag with another would be sternly dealt with. Patel, who vehemently condemned the activities of the RSS, was loudly cheered at the conclusion of his speech," stated the report.

    "Sardar Patel was referring to the steps that the Government had taken against the RSS. He said that the RSS organisation, which operated secretly, was supposed to safeguard Hindu culture. There was a challenge to the national flag that had come to be respected by kings and rulers, and the power that ruled over India for 200 years. It was under that flag that the Congress made great sacrifices, and today under no circumstances would they give up the ideal for which the party members had lived and worked," the report quoted Patel as saying.

    Also Read: Diversity, not ‘us vs them’ mindset, India’s tradition: RSS chief Bhagwat

    'RSS — a clear threat to government'

    After Modi hailed the RSS for its role in nation-building on Wednesday (October 1), the Congress reminded him that Patel said that the Sangh's activities created an atmosphere that led to the assassination of Gandhi.

    In a post on X the same day, Ramesh asked, "The PM has spoken much of the RSS this morning. Is he even aware of what Sardar Patel wrote to Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee on July 18, 1948?" The senior Congress leader also shared extracts from a letter that Patel wrote to Mookerjee.

    In the letter, Patel said, "As regards the RSS and the Hindu Mahasabha, the case relating to Gandhi ji's murder is sub judice and I should not like to say anything about the participation of the two organisations, but our reports do confirm that, as a result of the activities of these two bodies, particularly the former, an atmosphere was created in the country in which such a ghastly tragedy became possible."

    "The activities of the RSS constituted a clear threat to the existence of the government and the State. Our reports show that those activities, despite the ban, have not died down. Indeed, as time has marched on, the RSS circles are becoming more defiant and are indulging in their subversive activities in an increasing measure," quoting Patel, Ramesh mentioned in the post.

    Also Read: RSS at 100: Modi unveils coin with first-ever depiction of Bharat Mata on Indian currency

    Row over RSS coin

    During the RSS's centenary celebrations on Wednesday, Modi said the organisation never displayed any bitterness despite several attacks on it as it continued to work on the principle of nation first. Modi also released a special postage stamp and a commemorative coin, which features the first-ever depiction of Bharat Mata on Indian currency.

    Slamming the PM, Congress General Secretary K C Venugopal said, "Inaugurating a commemorative coin and stamp to honour the RSS is a deep insult to India's freedom struggle and the Constitution." Honouring an organisation that actively collaborated with India's colonial masters and continues to spread poison in society to this day must be seen as a dark day in history, he said in a post late Wednesday.

    "How can an organisation that was banned by Sardar Patel be honoured today by the Indian Government? How can those who advocate rewriting our Constitution and destroying the social justice agenda given to us by Dr Ambedkar be celebrated as national icons?" Venugopal asked.

    (With inputs from agency)
    CongressRSSRahul GandhiMahatma GandhiSardar Vallabhbhai PatelJairam Ramesh
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