LUCKNOW: Launching a scathing attack on the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), former Madhya Pradesh CM, and senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Friday accused the organization of inciting communal violence and questioned its financial transparency.
Speaking at Datia in Jhansi after visiting the Pitambara Peeth, the senior Congress leader said the RSS claimed the Muslim population was increasing, but in reality, the Muslim population had declined more than the Hindu population.
“If the government wants, riots can be prevented. Riots depend on the intent of the government and officials. Authorities should act timely to stop such incidents,” said Singh. Regarding the Bareilly violence, he added that people like Maulana Tauqeer Raza also existed among Hindus. “Some individuals provoke communities through incendiary speeches,” he said.
Questioning the financial transparency of the RSS, Digvijaya said that the organization collected donations worth crores every year during Vijayadashami and Guru Purnima. “If they don’t have accounts, where does the money go? Their only agenda is to provoke Hindus and indoctrinate people against the Constitution. They never hold open protests; they always indulge in covert politics,” the Congress leader added.
Singh also raised questions about the RSS’s spending during COVID-19. “RSS claimed to have spent Rs 7 crore in aid. I wrote to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman asking for details. How did this non-registered organization spend Rs 7 crore without accounts? There should be a money-laundering case, yet no response has come,” he said.
On claims of a growing Muslim population, Singh said it was impossible. “The Muslim population is declining faster than the Hindu population. The 2001–2011 census proves this, and the 2021 report has been withheld. The RSS and the government are misleading Hindus,” he alleged.
Criticizing the UP government for filing FIRs over religious expressions, Singh said, “If someone says ‘I love Mohammad’ and someone else says ‘I love Ram’ or ‘I love Krishna,’ what is the problem? Why file a case? Riots depend on the intention of the dispensation.”
He reiterated that people like Maulana Tauqeer Raza, chief of the Ittehad-e-Millat Council and a prominent figure of the Barelvi Sunni sect, also existed among Hindus. “Such individuals give inflammatory speeches. The government can prevent riots if it acts timely,” Singh said.
Significantly, Tauqeer Raza was the one who gave a call for protests in Bareilly during last week’s Friday namaz and the protests turned violent leaving scores including the cops injured.