MUMBAI: A controversy has erupted over whether the mother of Chief Justice of India Bhushan Ramakrishna Gavai will attend a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) event marking Vijayadashami and the centenary of the organisation in Maharashtra’s Amravati district on October 5.
The RSS had reportedly invited Dr Kamaltai Gavai, wife of late RS Gavai, a former governor, to attend the function as chief guest. The event is scheduled to be held at Srimati Narsamma Mahavidyalaya Maidan in Amravati’s Kiran Nagar locality.
The centenary celebrations will also include more than one lakh Hindu Sammelans and thousands of symposiums across the country, beginning with RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s annual Vijayadashami address at the organisation’s Nagpur headquarters on October 2.
Kamaltai Gavai’s name appeared on the invitation card that was printed and distributed. After criticism from Dalit, progressive and secular groups, it was clarified that the name had been included without the consent of the Chief Justice. A letter circulated on social media further stated that Kamaltai was an Ambedkarite and would not attend the RSS programme.
The controversy deepened when her other son, Rajendra Gavai, later released a video saying his mother would attend the October 5 event. He said the Gavai family maintained relationships across parties and ideologies, but that did not mean they subscribed to them.
Rajendra said his mother had accepted the invitation to attend the Amravati event, which he noted was separate from the main RSS function in Nagpur on October 2. “Besides, personal relationships and political relationships are two different things. It does not mean attending an RSS event, leaving our Ambedkarite ideology behind. This is not the case. We strongly believe in our ideology,” he said.
Defending the decision, he cited the family’s ties with leaders including Indira Gandhi, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Gangadhar Fadnavis, father of Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. “Indira Gandhi had offered the chief minister post to my father, RS Gavai, but he refused to leave his Ambedkarite ideology and join the Congress. Even Sonia Gandhi and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge offered me a ticket in the Lok Sabha elections, but I denied it for the same reason,” he said.
He added that some people unhappy with his brother’s elevation as Chief Justice of India were spreading false information about the family. “But the Gavai family has respected every person, even though he or she belongs to a different ideology. We respect all religions,” he said.