This Article is From Jul 28, 2016

Two Days, Two Meetings: RSS Plays Mediator Between Government And Parivar

Two Days, Two Meetings: RSS Plays Mediator Between Government And Parivar

RSS brought together Education Minister Prakash Javadekar and several organisations for a 6-hour meeting

New Delhi: The RSS or Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh organised two marathon meetings in two days, stepping in to play peace-maker as several organisations linked to it express impatience with the BJP-led central government on policy.  

After Tuesday's meeting where the BJP's ideological mentor was the mediator at discussions between trade unions affiliated to it and top ministers, the RSS brought together Education Minister Prakash Javadekar and several organisations for a six-hour meeting on Wednesday to discuss a new education policy. 

RSS general secretary Krishngopal led the first such formal meeting between Mr Javadekar, who took over earlier this month, and leaders of its affiliates like the Vidya Bharti, student body Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, the Rashtriye Shikshak Mahasangh, an organisation of teachers and others. 

They made suggestions for the new education policy focused on nationalism and ancient Indian knowledge, which the RSS says has been ignored in the last 70 years. They also said the policy must benefit deprived sections and tribal regions, with Vidya Bharati making a presentation on the challenges faced in providing primary education in villages and remote areas of the country. 

The RSS and its affiliates are said to have been upset with Mr Javadekar's predecessor Smriti Irani as the education policy she was driving did not adequately reflect their inputs. In a cabinet reshuffle earlier this month, Ms Irani was shifted out to the more low profile Textiles Ministry. 

At Tuesday's meeting, leaders of the RSS's labour wing Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh or BMS and the Laghu Udyog Bharti had met ministers like Nirmala Sitharaman and Piyush Goyal at the RSS headquarters headquarters in Delhi. 

They opposed new foreign direct investment or FDI rules saying these would kill local and small businesses and erase thousands of jobs, denting the government's "nationalist" image. 

The BJP was told that its government must focus on labour friendly policies and ensure that young people do not migrate from villages to towns for jobs. It was also warned that rising unemployment is causing a rise in crime and unrest among young voters. 

The RSS is worried that unless a breakthrough is achieved its own unions will side with opposition parties in demonstrations against the new FDI policies that were announced in June. 
 
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