RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat also asked political leaders to be careful while making statements.
As the debate over rising intolerance rages across the country, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat today said "small episodes" that "get exaggerated" cannot damage the Hindu culture and the country will always "stand as one".
In his traditional address on the occasion of Vijaya Dashami, the RSS chief said, "Small episodes happen. They get exaggerated and presented in a big way... But it does not distort Indian culture, Hindu culture. Since time immemorial, it respects diversity, coordinates among diversities to establish unity... This is Hindutva."
The chief of RSS -- the ideological mentor of the BJP, which leads the NDA government at the Centre -- also advised the politicians to make their statements with care. "Politicians should think whether their words will foster harmony or discord," he said.
Over the last few weeks, President Pranab Mukherjee, had reinforced the message of tolerance and unity.
Earlier this week, the government broke its silence on the incidents that have given rise to a raging debate, with Union Minister Arun Jaitley saying, "There has to be a civilised mode of discussing and debating these issues." He had also confirmed that the leaders who made incendiary statements in the aftermath of the Dadri lynching had been taken to task by BJP chief Amit Shah.
Lately, lynchings over alleged cow slaughter and beef consumption have been reported from several parts of the country; ink and paint attacks have taken place on columnist Sudheendra Kulkarni and a lawmaker from Jammu and Kashmir and over the last one year, three well-known rationalists have been murdered. More than 40 authors have returned their Sahitya Akademi award citing these incidents, fueling the debate over intolerance.
But Mr Bhagwat, in his 55-minute speech, called for a holistic discussion on population, saying its continuous rise becomes a burden. Without naming any community, he said he favoured a "uniform population policy which is applicable to all". Several fringe elements have repeatedly demanded a curb on Muslim population.