Centre lifts decades-old ban on government employees joining RSS; Congress criticizes move

New Delhi, July 22: The Central government has recently lifted a longstanding ban on government employees participating in activities associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). This move has sparked criticism from the Congress party, with senior leader Jairam Ramesh questioning its timing.

Ramesh shared on social media a photo of an order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) on July 9, which rescinded a 58-year-old ban on government servants associating with the RSS. The order referenced earlier directives from 1966, 1970, and 1980, and stated that the mention of “Rashtriya Swayam Sewak Sangh (R.S.S.S)” had been removed.

The RSS was initially declared an unlawful organization in 1948 due to concerns over its activities following the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi by Nathuram Godse, an RSS member. "Sardar Patel had banned the RSS in February 1948 following Gandhi ji's assassination. Subsequently, the ban was withdrawn on assurances of good behavior. Even after this, the RSS never flew the Tiranga in Nagpur," Ramesh said.

In 1966, a fresh ban was introduced, which, according to Ramesh, stated, "As certain doubts have been raised about the government’s policy with respect to the membership of and participation in the activities of the Rashtriya Swayam Sewak Sangh and the Jamaat-e-Islami by government servants, it is clarified that government have always held the activities of these two organizations to be of such a nature that participation in them by government servants would attract the Central Civil Services Conduct Rules."

Ramesh lambasted the lifting of the ban and questioned its timing, saying, "After June 4th, 2024, relations between the self-anointed non-biological PM and the RSS have nosedived. On July 9, 2024, the 58-year ban that was in force even during Mr. Vajpayee's tenure as PM was removed."

BJP's IT department head, Amit Malviya, also shared the screenshot of the order and welcomed the move, stating, "The unconstitutional order issued 58 years ago, in 1966, imposing a ban on government employees taking part in the activities of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh has been withdrawn by the Modi government." Malviya argued that the original ban should never have been implemented.