RSS expresses openness to dialogue amid UK boycott calls

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has expressed openness to dialogue following opposition to a visit by its chief, Mohan Bhagwat, to the United Kingdom. RSS media head Sunil Ambedkar stated that the organization “expects a debate and exchange of thoughts” and noted that it is “very normal to raise different voices” in a democracy.

In the UK, twenty civil society organizations have written to London Mayor Sadiq Khan and the UK Foreign Office, urging the Greater London Authority to boycott events organized by the RSS. The groups, including Hindus for Human Rights and the UK-Indian Muslim Council, described the RSS as “an authoritarian and militarist group which drew explicit inspiration from European fascism.” They requested that officials refrain from providing venues for the events and take measures to protect multicultural communities.

This visit follows similar opposition during Bhagwat’s recent trip to the United States, where an event at Madison Square Garden in New York City also faced criticism from various groups.