Why RSS is irritated and angry with Mohan Bhagwat

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is passing through its toughest time after the post-Emergency era, when a ban was put against it by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. The reason is that the number of Shakha-goers has decreased by 15 per cent in UP since May 2014, when the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) came to power at the Centre.

It is not just the loss of cadre that is worrying the RSS. An internal report presented before the RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat in Varanasi last week, indicated that most of the organisational secretaries of the Sangh who were deployed in the BJP - to act as a bridge between the RSS and the BJP - are not doing their jobs. In fact, Bhagwat was quoted as saying in a closed door meeting that these secretaries have forgotten the reason why they were assigned to the BJP in the first place.

Bhagwat's irritation was seen when he refused to meet Chandra Shekhar, organisational secretary of Kashi Prant (Varanasi zone). The RSS sources say this because Shekhar has been busy managing the affairs of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his parliamentary constituency. Shekhar is known in the political circle as a man who can take up the peoples' as well as leaders' issues with PM Modi. Party sources say he has grown in the last year as a political power-broker. However, the Sangh had expected from him to expedite promised developmental works in Varanasi, which so far, they say, has not progressed to their satisfaction.

Speaking on current political issues, a senior RSS functionary told Mail Today that a divide has now sprung up within the Sangh on whether to back Sushma Swaraj and Vasundhara Raje.

"Indresh Kumar, (the man who looks after the Muslim affairs of the RSS) has offered his support to these women leaders. But Bhagwat is not happy about this and believes that this support should stop," he said. Kumar had also supported Swaraj's decision on Lalit Modi to travel out of the UK in August 2014. This was when Lalit Modi had been restricted from travelling to the UK and his Indian passport had also been revoked amidst the allegations of match-fixing against him.

The Modi episode aside, some RSS sources claim that there is growing anger against the functioning of Bhagwat. They claim that contrary to the practices of the Sarsanghchalak, Bhagwat actually enjoys a luxurious lifestyle. These double standards, sources say, are creating unrest within the Sangh.

"While he teaches cadre to stick to the basic minimum of life and work for the mission of the RSS to make India a holy nation, Bhagwat himself prefers staying in the houses of MPs and ministers during his tours. There is also murmuring over his acceptance of 'Z' Plus and VVIP security from the Centre."

Emphasising on the security issue, the RSS functionary added: "Why do we need the government's security? We can manage to give Sarsanghchalak the requisite security he needs. But now he will have commandos and the CRPF men around him.

"We used to say before that such kind of security distances the leaders from the public. Now the same is becoming true for the Sarsanghchalak."

Clearly there are many issues the RSS needs to deal with to set its house in order. But even so, the decline in UP has been steep and surprising given that the Modi factor was responsible for the increase in cadre membership across India, and especially in West Bengal. And with Bihar polls coming up, the RSS needs to work even more closely with the BJP to ensure success.