Do not judge people by caste, wealth or language: RSS chief

Asserting that the country belongs to everyone, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat on Wednesday called for social harmony, urging people to rise above divisions of caste, wealth, and language to treat “everyone as one’s own”. The RSS chief also encouraged families to dedicate one day each week for collective activities like meals, prayers, and discussions to foster connection and combat loneliness.

Addressing a ‘Hindu Sammelan’ at Sonpairi village in Chhattisgarh’s Raipur district, Bhagwat said that the first step toward social harmony is the removal of discrimination and separation from one’s mind.

“The entire country belongs to everyone, and this spirit is true social harmony,” Bhagwat said and insisted that public facilities like temples, water bodies, and cremation grounds must be open to all Hindus without exception. People should not judge anyone by their caste, wealth, language or region and treat everyone as their own, he said.

“The entire India is mine,” he said, describing this approach as samajik samrasta (social harmony). Bhagwat stressed the need to revive family interactions, saying families should spend at least one day a week together, engage in prayers according to their faith, eat home-cooked food together and hold meaningful discussions, Bhagwat said, calling the discussions ‘mangal samvad’.

“People often fall into bad habits when they feel lonely. Regular interaction and dialogue within families can help prevent this,” the RSS chief said.

Bhagwat called for social harmony, environmental responsibility and disciplined civic life, urging people to rise above divisions and work collectively for society and the nation. He said temples, water bodies and cremation grounds should be open to all Hindus, describing social work as an effort of unity, not conflict.

“All local resources and facilities, water sources like ponds and wells, places of worship such as temples and monasteries, arrangements for religious activities, and even final rites after death, should be open to all Hindus. “If this can be achieved through dialogue and understanding, it should be done that way. There should be no violence, because this is about uniting people, not struggling against them,” Bhagwat said.

Bhagwat added that loneliness often pushes people towards addiction. He underlined the concept of ‘kutumb prabodhan’, stating that individuals must reflect on how much time and resources they devote daily to society and the nation.

“If the country is in danger, families are also in danger,” he said, calling for values to be practised at home and in daily life.

Expressing concern over global warming and environmental degradation, Bhagwat urged people to begin conservation efforts from their homes by saving water, adopting rainwater harvesting, reducing single-use plastic and planting more trees. He also advocated the use of one’s mother tongue at home, respect for Indian attire and promotion of swadeshi and self-reliance by buying locally made products, except where imports such as medicines are unavoidable. Bhagwat called for strict adherence to the Constitution, laws and civic discipline.

He said the Constitution’s preamble, fundamental duties and citizens’ responsibilities should be read and followed regularly, along with traditional social values like respecting elders and helping the needy.

The work of the RSS, that began from a small shakha in Nagpur, has now spread everywhere, Bhagwat said. “At the mandal level, Hindus everywhere are coming together. This is happening on the occasion of the RSS completing 100 years,” he said. There is no plan to celebrate the organisation’s centenary, Bhagwat said.

“Completing 100 years in itself is not an achievement or a matter of bravery. What matters is that the work of the RSS, which began as a small shakha on a ground in Nagpur, is today spread across the entire country,” he said. “RSS volunteers can be found everywhere — in Kashmir, Mizoram, Andaman, Sikkim, Kutch, and across the north, south, east and west of India. Wherever India exists, the Sangh’s work and its volunteers are present,” he said.

“This expansion has happened because Dr Hedgewar devoted his life entirely to building the organisation,” he said, lauding the work of Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, who founded the RSS in Nagpur in 1925.