RSS top brass begins 3-day meet in Bhopal

nNEWDELHI: A three-day meeting of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s (RSS) top leadership began in Madhya Pradesh’s Bhopal on Tuesday, said persons aware of the details.

“This is for the first time since March that all the senior functionaries will be present together for a meeting. Since large scale gatherings and meetings with many people in attendance are not allowed for sometime, the Sangh will shift focus on smaller, regional meetings,” said a functionary.

The Sangh leadership is expected to hold discussions on the recent national and international issues including the Indiachina face-off; bilateral relations with Nepal, the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on economy and jobs and the upcoming Bhoomi Pujan in Ayodhya that will mark the beginning of the Ram Temple construction, the persons aware of the details said.

Economy and the employment sector are expected to be the area of focus at the three-day meeting, which will be attended by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and seven other top functionaries.

A senior functionary said the Sangh is concerned by the severe impact that the pandemic has had on economy, particularly the small and micro manufacturing sectors. “Job losses and winding up of business have been a fallout of the pandemic, but the Sangh leadership is keen that the government should offer help to the small and micro sectors to revive. This was also discussed ahead of the government’s announcement of an aatmanirbhar package. There will be further discussions based on the feedback,” said the functionary.

The Sangh and its affiliates have already lauded the government’s efforts to cut dependence on China and have been aggressively pushing for scaling indigenous production.

On the upcoming Ram Temple in Ayodhya, a second functionary said there are no differences between the Sangh and the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.