After heavy belt, shoes and socks, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has decided to shed another facet of its sartorial trait. The trademark khaki shorts of the Sangh will be replaced with brown trousers, after nine decades.
RSS general secretary Suresh alias Bhaiyyaji Joshi made the announcement of the change in "ganavesh (uniform)" in Nagpur on Sunday at the end of a three-day meeting of the Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha, the top decision-making body of the Sangh. He said the RSS was not rigid and that with time it felt changes needed to be brought in.Suresh alias Bhaiyyaji Joshi made the announcement of the change in "ganavesh (uniform)" in Nagpur on Sunday at the end of a three-day meeting of the Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha, the top decision-making body of the Sangh.
There was a concern in the RSS that many people, particularly the youth, were uncomfortable or weary about wearing shorts. The change is part of the RSS's attempt to reach out to the youth in urban as well as rural areas, sources said.
This is not the first time that the RSS, the ideological mentor of the BJP, is making a change in its dress code. The Sangh had earlier changed the heavy leather belts and boots as well as thick socks to lighter, 'more people-friendly' accessories, they said. While the belt was changed in 2011, the leather shoes were replaced with lighter, more comfortable shoes around 15 years ago.BJP, is making a change in its dress code.
Sources in the RSS also recalled that less than a decade ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was then Gujarat chief minister, had suggested to the Sangh brass that it consider changing the uniform from shorts to trousers to make it more attractive for the youth to join the organisation. The proposal was even understood to have been discussed in RSS circles, but the argument against an immediate change had then prevailed, they said.
Besides the youth, there was also an acknowledgment that people in rural areas would find trousers more comfortable. The changes in uniform are part of the modernising process, sources said. Joshi made it clear that the trousers would be made comfortable for doing exercise, a part of the RSS shakhas, and that the new uniform would also become part of the Sangh's identity in a few months. The modalities of when the uniform will be changed will be worked out.
"Any mass organisation cannot grow without a change. The RSS has always brought changes to stay in sync with the times," RSS spokesperson Manmohan Vaidya told reporters in Nagpur.
Till 1940, the RSS uniform was khaki shirts and shorts, as designed by Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, the founding Sarsanghchalak of the Sangh. It was changed to white shirt and khaki shorts.
Important for RSS to change its thinking: clerics on dresscode
It is more important to change the "mentality" than the dress code, clerics from different religious groups said today while reacting to the RSS' decision to shift from khaki shorts to brown trousers. "The dress code changes with time but it is not an important issue to focus on. What is important is to have change in the mentality to take all communities and religion in the country together," said Abdul Hameed Nomani of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind.
The All India Christian Council said the Hindu right wing outfit needs to change its thinking. "Wearing patloons will not change their thinking. Those khaki knickers are now famous and they have become symbol of their ideology. Changing dress like buses will not help. They will do what they have been doing," John Dayal, Secretary- General of the All India Christian Council said.
Anti-national slogans at JNU is serious matter
RSS described as a 'serious matter' the raising of anti-national slogans in JNU and said the law should take its course without the matter being politicised. The organisation also slammed Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad for comparing it with dreaded terrorist outfit ISIS, saying it exposes his "lack of knowledge" and "intellectual bankruptcy". On the issue of anti-national slogans raised in JNU, RSS general secretary Suresh Bhayyaji Joshi said it was a "serious matter for all patriotic citizens" and it should not be politicised. "Law will take its own course but who allowed this environment to grow in universities? If such universities become the centers of anti-national activities, it is a matter of grave concern and not that of politics," he said. He questioned that whether any political party, which comes to power, can change its stand or role in reference to Pakistan.
No reservation for affluent sections
In a veiled reference to the recent Jat agitation, RSS on Sunday disapproved of reservation demands by the 'affluent' sections and favoured a study to ascertain whether the deserving backward classes are actually getting the quota benefits. Pitching for social harmony, the Sangh fountainhead said members of the "Hindu community are responsible" for caste-based discrimination and "we need to eradicate it" for social justice, regarding which he invoked BR Ambedkar. Disapproving of demands for quota by "affluent" sections, RSS general secretary Suresh Bhaiyyaji Joshi said the provisions of reservation made by Bhimrao Ambedkar were for social justice and that concept should be kept in mind by those demanding reservation today.
