Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat said in a program organized by the Sangh in Mumbai on Sunday that if the Sangh asks, he will resign from his post.
In Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, no Sarsanghchalak was ever directed to resign due to age limit. Of course, during its hundred years of journey, three out of six Sarsanghchalaks have voluntarily resigned during their lifetime, but the reason for this has been their deteriorating health. Bala Saheb Deoras, Professor Rajendra Singh and K. S. Sudarshan had made it clear in his addresses at the time of resigning that for the Sangh, not individuals but its objectives are important.
The Sangh is run by ideas and not by individuals. Current Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat said in a program organized by the Sangh in Mumbai on Sunday that he will resign if the Sangh asks. On this pretext, let us know the incidents of tenure and resignation of the previous Sarsanghchalaks.
Doctor Hedgewar said, Guruji, now the Sangh is your responsibility.
Sangh’s founder Sarsanghchalak Dr. Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, while ill, in his last address among the volunteers in Nagpur on June 4, 1940, had said, “I do not think that I am in a position to say a few words to you. As you know, I have been bedridden for the last twenty-four days. From the Sangh’s point of view, the last one year has been glorious. It is meaningless to ask what the Sangh will do in the future.”
Founder Sarsanghchalak of the Sangh, Dr. Keshav Baliram Hedgewar.
The Sangh will try to raise its flight even higher. We will continue our efforts. A golden moment will come when the whole of India will stand as one nation. As an unbroken and undivided unit. Then no power in the world will be able to cast an evil eye on India.”
On June 20, his condition became more serious. The doctor was preparing for lumbar puncture test. Doctor Hedgewar had realized that the end was near. In the presence of everyone, he called Madhav Sadashiv Golwalkar “Guruji” near and said, “Okay, now you have to take the responsibility of the Sangh on your shoulders.” Dr. Hedgewar, born on 1 April 1889, died on 21 June 1940.
What did Guruji write in those three letters?
The Sangh’s journey of more than three decades under the leadership of the second Sarsanghchalak Guru Golwalkar was full of challenges as well as great achievements. This period was also very important for the country and society. There were a lot of controversies regarding the Sangh. The first ban was also imposed during his time. But under his leadership the Sangh continued to expand while remaining focused on its goals.
Guru Golwalkar, the second Sarsanghchalak of RSS.
By 1972, Guruji’s health had deteriorated considerably. Due to poor health, he spent the month of March 1973 in the headquarters of the Sangh. On April 2, 1973, he wrote three letters and submitted them to Office Secretary Pandurang Kshirsagar. According to Arun Anand’s book “5 Sarsanghchalak”, three letters which he had handed over to Kshirsagar were opened in the presence of everyone after his death. In one of these letters, he had handed over the responsibility of the Sangh’s Sarsanghchalak to Bala Saheb Deoras. In the second letter, he had forbidden to build any monument of his own. In the third, Saint Tukaram’s humble prayer, O God, do not forget me, was written. Guruji was born on 19.2.1906 and died on 5 June 1973.
Why did Bala Saheb Devras leave his post?
Before his death in 1973, Guruji, while introducing the intellectual giving volunteer at the Sangh’s education camp in Pune, had said, “Many of you may not have seen Dr. Hedgewar. If you see Balasaheb Deoras, you will see Dr. Hedgewar standing in front of you.” During the next 21 years of Deoras’ tenure, the Sangh faced two restrictions. Endured the emergency. Protests and controversies continued to follow. But the union kept moving forward. On March 11, 1994, Bala Saheb Deoras arrived in a wheel chair at the meeting of the Sangh’s representative assembly at the Sangh’s headquarters in Reshambagh, Nagpur. With the help of volunteers he was taken to the stage.
His voice was weak due to poor health. He said, “Respected Guruji had given me this responsibility in 1973. With the cooperation and support of all of you, I have been able to carry this responsibility till now. But due to deteriorating health, it is no longer possible for me to travel. Therefore, after consultation with all the senior workers, I have decided that Professor Rajendra Singh (Rajju Bhaiya) should now take this responsibility on his shoulders. I have full confidence that Rajju Bhaiya will also continue to get the support and cooperation from all of you. I too will be a I will try my best to contribute as a volunteer.” Bala Saheb, born on 19.5.2017, died on 17.6.96.
Former Sangh chief Balasaheb Deoras.
Even after resigning the post of Sarsanghchalak, Rajju Bhaiya is in the branch.
Rajju Bhaiya was asked whether due to political compulsions the Sangh is associating the names of Dr. Ambedkar and Mahatma Phule with itself? His answer was, “Everyday volunteers sing the “Ekatikata Stotra” in branches across the country. It was first compiled in 1950. Since then, we were thinking of giving it a new form. About fifteen years ago, we composed a new Ekatikata Stotra in which the names of Subhash Chandra Bose, Savarkar, Dr. Ambedkar and Mahatma Phule were included. Generally, the society has welcomed our step.”
BBC. Had asked him whether we can call him an aggressive Hindu? His reply was, “We are neither submissive Hindus nor aggressive Hindus. We are vocal Hindus. We do not feel ashamed of being Hindus. We are proud of being Hindus.” Rajju Bhaiya, born on 19.1.1922, died on 15.7.2003 but after poor health and then a broken hip, he handed over the reins of the Sangh on 10 March 2000 to K. S. Handed over to Sudarshan. Interestingly, after resigning, as soon as there was some improvement in his health, he used to join the branch as an ordinary volunteer.
Born on 18 June 1931. S. Sudarshan (Kuppahalli Sitaramaiah Sudarshan) was the fifth Sarsanghchalak of the Sangh. He is known as the ideological, theoretical and intellectual face of the Sangh. He was one of those preachers of the Sangh who showed his proficiency in all three areas, branch, intellectual class and ideological training. He also worked to connect the ideological literature of the Sangh with modern contexts. He stressed on developing the volunteers as thoughtful citizens. He was a critic of power-centric politics. On March 21, 2009, due to health reasons, he voluntarily resigned from the responsibility of the post of Sarsanghchalak. In accordance with the tradition of the Sangh, the resignation took place peacefully, institutionally and without any public controversy.
On this occasion, in his address on the second day of the meeting of the All India Representative Assembly held in Nagpur, he had said, the Sangh is not run by any person, but by ideas. People come and go, but continuity of ideas is the strength of the organization. When the ability to fulfill the responsibilities starts decreasing, then leaving the post is the true loyalty towards the organization.
RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat.
He cautioned that merely winning elections is not democracy. Democracy survives only when it has moral courage. Volunteers should not consider being close to power as an achievement. Continue the work of creating moral pressure in the society. The future of the Sangh will not be decided by the ups and downs of governments but by the character building of the society. As per the tradition of the Sangh, he had announced the name of Mohan Bhagwat as his successor and the House of Representatives approved it. Sudarshanji died on 15 September 2012.
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