Rajasthan Home Minister Shanti Dhariwal on Tuesday alleged that Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has always opposed the national flag and the national anthem and recounted events from the past to put his point forward.
"When Mahatma Gandhi asked people across the country to celebrate Independence Day on January 26, 1930, and unfurl the tricolour, the RSS unfurled saffron flag instead," the minister said at an event in Jaipur.
The Rajasthan minister also alleged that the RSS backed the national song "Vande Mataram" instead of the national anthem.
"The RSS has been saying since 1925 that the national anthem Jana Gana Mana doesn't instil a feeling of patriotism like the national song does. They have been against the national anthem and used to openly say that the national flag should only sport saffron colour," he said.
जिस हेडक्वार्टर के उद्घाटन में चीफ गेस्ट थे चिदंबरम, उसी में आरोपी बनाकर लाई CBI
The minister then went on to say that former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was "very disturbed" with the RSS ideologies. "Rajiv Gandhi was very disturbed with the ideologies of the RSS. He was sure that if the country suffers losses due to communal tensions, it will be due to the policies of the RSS," the minister said.