Clerics have 6 questions for RSS

The All-India Sunni Ulema Council has posed six questions to the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) which is holding its annual meeting in Kanpur.

A letter from the council was sent to RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on Monday. The council members had sought an appointment for a meeting with the RSS chief but when the same could not be fixed, the letter was sent to Mr Bhagwat.

In its first question, the council has sought to know whether the RSS considers India to be a Hindu Rashtra. In its second query, it has demanded to know the roadmap for establishing a Hindu Rashtra.

The council, in its third question, wants to know whether the Hindu Rashtra would be run according to Hindu scriptures. In its fourth question, the council has asked the RSS to explain what and how are Muslims expected to prove their nationalist feelings.

The fifth question relates to the RSS policy on conversion and in its sixth query, the council has asked the RSS to explain what it knows about Islam and its understanding of the religion.

Talking to reporters after submitted its questions to the RSS chief, council general secretary Haji Mohammed Salees said that about a year ago, the All-India Sunni Ulema Council had posed a set of questions to the RSS and its leader Indresh Kumar had come for discussions. “However, he did not address our questions but said that a debate should be held on the issues. The discussions were never held,” he said.

He said that Muslims in the country wanted to know what the Sangh Parivar felt about these crucial issues but the latter was obviously not interested in clearing the air.

He further said that if the Sangh Parivar wanted Muslims to remain a part of the social and political mainstream, it should directly address the issues mentioned in the letter.

“Certain issues like the Hindu Rashtra are continuously raised from time to time and now there is talk of common civil code. This creates confusion and insecurity among Muslims,” he said.