New Delhi: RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat turned 75 on Thursday, with a galaxy of leaders from the ruling alliance, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, heaping praise on his leadership of the Hindutva organisation.
Sarsanghchalak, as the head of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is called, since 2009, Bhagwat has presided over the organisation’s expansion and outreach to different sections of the society, including minorities.
In a glowing piece that appeared in several newspapers on Thursday, Modi said Bhagwat is a living example of “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” (the world is a family) and has dedicated his entire life to societal transformation and strengthening the spirit of harmony and fraternity.
Modi, senior members of his cabinet like Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah and J P Nadda, who is also the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president, wished Bhagwat and praised his stewardship of the organisation, which has been the ideological inspiration for the saffron party. Noting that it is a pleasant coincidence that the completion of the RSS’ 100-year journey and Vijaya Dashami, as well as the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi and Lal Bahadur Shastri, fall on the same day this year, Modi said the Hindutva organisation has a very wise and hardworking head in Bhagwat.