What's harm in sharing details if everything is transparent, Cong leader asks RSS

Bengaluru,

Senior Congress leader Meenakshi Natarajan on Wednesday asked the RSS what's harm in coming forward and providing details, including registration and funding, if everything is transparent. Accusing the BJP of "vote theft, seat theft, and party theft," the AICC leader alleged a conspiracy and a deliberate effort to eliminate political parties one after another in the country, and questioned whether the intention was "one nation, one party system."

"The demand is right because it is the responsibility of every political party to conduct its own elections. They (RSS) say that they are not a political organisation but a cultural organisation. If so, that's fine. But they should provide their registration number, disclose who their members are, and submit audited accounts. They (the BJP) themselves made the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) stricter," Natarajan said in response to a question. Speaking to reporters here, she said that if the RSS receives any grants, it should disclose who provides them, the composition of its trust, where its registered office is located, and all these details.

"They (RSS) should disclose how much donation they have received, from whom they received it, and whether that money was tax-paid income or not, the money they refer to as Guru Dakshina. When they receive donations worth crores of rupees as Guru Dakshina, we have no objection, but the people of this country have a right to know those details. Because if any organisation is formed tomorrow, it would not be wrong to ask them these questions," she added. Further stating that, as far as she remembers, the country's first Deputy Prime Minister, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, had also raised these very questions before the RSS, the Congress leader said, "If everything is transparent, what harm is there in coming forward and providing those details? Please do so."

Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge has been demanding that the RSS register itself, clarify its legal status, and disclose its sources of funding, income, expenditure and assets. Accusing the ruling BJP at the Centre of "vote chori, seat chori, party chori," Natarajan said, for example, in one assembly constituency in Bengaluru, it came to light that 200 voters were registered from the same building, which was vote theft. Then, as part of "seat theft," they worked to prevent people from even contesting elections -- they used to do this in local body elections, and now similar things have appeared in Rajya Sabha elections as well.

"And now, one after another, they are absorbing political parties into their fold. So the question is: Are they moving toward a one nation, one party system, or are they simply trying to make up the numbers they need? Because last time, one of their constitutional amendment bills was rejected on the floor of the House, so are they trying to compensate for that? What exactly are they trying to achieve," she asked. Targeting the BJP for ensuring the rejection of her nomination for the Rajya Sabha election from Madhya Pradesh, Natarajan alleged that the Election Commission is "compromised".

The Congress had nominated Natarajan as its sole candidate for the June 18 Rajya Sabha elections from Madhya Pradesh. The former Member of Parliament said that the Congress and the opposition are fully aware and prepared to fight their battle strongly and effectively amid the country's ongoing political challenges. "Our leaders, Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, showed us that path. Obviously, issues such as the NEET paper leak scandal, the rising crisis of LPG prices and other necessities, the way Indians are reportedly sent back from America in handcuffs, the employment crisis facing us, and, more recently, the way relatives of the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh have allegedly spread a kind of land mafia rule. These are all issues on which we must unite and fight," she said.