BHOPAL: Chief Minister Kamal Nath on Saturday contested RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s statement calling tribal people as ‘Hindus’.
At a meeting of RSS’ coordination committee on Thursday Bhagtwat said office-bearers of RSS and its outfits work to raise awareness in such a way that the tribal people should call themselves Hindus during the census of 2021.
Reacting to Bhagwat’s statement, Nath said forcing tribal people to show their religious affiliation against their identity would not be tolerated.
Since the RSS has failed to fulfill its aim to implement NRC across the country, it has opted for a different route to get it implemented, Nath said.
Bhagwat’s statement is divisive, he said, adding, RSS calls tribal people as ‘vanvasis (residents of forest areas), refusing to acknowledge their original identity.
Nath said RSS would not be allowed to poison the minds of tribal people.
Nevertheless, Nath’s statement may bring about another face off between Congress and BJP.
RSS has been campaigning across country for long, that tribal people should consider themselves Hindus.
RSS has launched a ‘gharwapasi (return home)’ campaign to bring those who were converted to Christianity back to Hinduism.
Jai Adiwasi, an organisation of the Sangh, has launched a campaign so that Tribal people call themselves Hindus.
