RSS Vijayadashami event at Nagpur's Reshimbagh to host Dhankhar, Israeli consul general as invitees

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's (RSS) Vijayadashami event this year will be held at the Reshimbagh ground in Nagpur. The programme will begin at 7.40 am on Tuesday, October 20. The country's attention is on the event both because it marks the close of the Sangh's centenary year and because of the direction it may set for the road ahead.

RSS Sarsanghchalak Dr Mohan Bhagwat will address the gathering. Sanjay Gupta, editor-in-chief of Dainik Jagran, will attend as chief guest. Former Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar and Israel's Consul General in Mumbai, Yaniv Revach, have also been invited to the event.

The RSS was founded in Nagpur on Vijayadashami in 1925 by Dr Keshav Baliram Hedgewar. For the Sangh, Vijayadashami is therefore not only a religious and cultural festival but also an important occasion as its foundation day. As Nagpur is the birthplace of the Sangh, the event at Reshimbagh carries a distinct significance for the organisation and in terms of its history.

The occasion may be used to review the organisation's growth, its shakha system, the training of swayamsevaks and the various initiatives it runs in society, over the journey from its founding to the centenary. In the centenary year, the Sangh has focused on taking its ideas and its way of working to society. Attention will therefore be on what position the Sarsanghchalak takes on the experience of this year, the organisation's priorities and its future goals.

The Sarsanghchalak's speech at the Vijayadashami event is an important feature of the Sangh's annual calendar. The speech sets out the Sangh's view on the country's social, cultural and national questions, and also gives indications of the road ahead. There is curiosity about what will be said this year on subjects such as social harmony, national integration, swadeshi, citizens' social responsibility and the expansion of the organisation. These are possible themes. The stand taken in the actual speech cannot be assumed before the event.

Senior journalist Sanjay Gupta will attend as chief guest. With Dhankhar and Revach invited, there is also discussion about the guests at the event. However, in drawing any political or international meaning from their presence, the position of the persons concerned and what actually happens at the event will have to be kept in mind.

The close of the centenary year is, for the Sangh, an occasion to review its work of the past hundred years and to make clear the direction of the next phase. This year's event is therefore not limited to an annual tradition. It is important as an opportunity to assess the Sangh's historical journey and learn its future priorities. It is expected that the Sarsanghchalak's address will make clear the Sangh's future direction and its stand on current issues.