RSS wing holds 'swadeshi' rally against Chinese goods

The year-long campaign of RSS' economic wing Swadeshi Jagaran Manch (SJM) against the influx of Chinese goods and it's negative impact on the indigenous products in the domestic market culminated into a mega rally on Sunday at the the Ramlila Maidan in Delhi.

In its memorandum presented to the Centre, the SJM has set demands for preferential treatment to domestic industry, particularly MSMEs, to boost employment, apart from asking for imposition of quality restrictions on Chinese goods. They also demanded that no new trade agreement be signed with the Chinese government and urged states to not allow any Chinese investment. It also asked private companies to desist partnering with Chinese companies.

Further, the SJM demanded that Chinese companies not be granted contracts in the northeastern states as it poses a "security threat" and that the Centre must take initiative "to provide impetus to Tibetans to restore their sovereignty from the cultches of China".

The rightwing economic organisation urged the Centre to open 'Special Chinese Cells'in the Ministry of Commerce and Finance to undertake studied to gauge the impact of the huge Chinese imports and "increasing stranglehold of Chinese investments in India.

Some members of BJP had been apprehensive of the rally, which they feared would embarrass the Modi government after the SJM statement on the continuance of UPA's economic policies. The organisers, however, said that they had had a Swadeshi agenda for a long time and the move was not to cause unease but enlighten policy makers.

"For the last one year we have been boycotting Chinese goods and have collected more than 2.5 crore signatures of people from various walks of life in favour of our demands. We have been trying to raise awareness by way of rath-yatras, distribution of pamphlets, student interactions. We reached out villages, too. The maharally is the culmination of our efforts," said SJM's national co-convenor R Sundaram.

"For the past 25 years we have been propounding our ideas. Just as Ayodhya is the symbol of Hindu pride, this rally, with an immediate focus on the adverse impact of Chinese goods on our economy, will be the symbol of a larger debate on economic policies," Sundaram said, hinting at NDA policies.

The SJM has also decided, said sources, that the organisation's agenda for the coming year would be to churn out an alternate economic model for India's growth.

National convenor Arun Ojha told DNA that the rally was not against or for any government. Rather, it was against an economic menace and for changing the fate of the country. "If some people think otherwise, they can; but, I am sure not all think so," said Ojha.