Why Are Karnataka Dalit Organisations Opposing RSS Camps in Schools?

Dalit organisations demanded that the RSS stop its training camps in public schools in three district of Karnataka.

RSS is conducting training camps in Bidar, Mulabagal, and Sirsi for nine days, to which the Dalit organisations have taken objection.

(Image: Vibhushita Singh/ The Quint)

Dalit organisations in Karnataka have put up a strong protest against Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's training camps being held in residential schools in the state. Why?

This month the RSS started training camps in government-aided residential schools in three districts of Karnataka including Bidar, Uttara Kannada, and Kolar. The event which started on 9 October 2022, is taking place for a period of nine days and will end on 16 October 2022.

Dalits Protest Against Bommai Government for Allowing RSS to Hold Camps in Schools 

Dalit organisations – Dalit Sangharsha Samiti, Dalit Sene, Dalita Sangha, Ambedkar Youth Association – and other small local organisations working towards the development of the oppressed communities have come together to hold a week long protest in the districts where the RSS has been holding training camps.

In Bidar, the protest which is being led by Rajkumar Mulabharati, mobilised over 500 people who took to streets and agitated in front of the Deputy Commissioner's office. Submitting a memorandum to the authorities concerned, the Forum of Dalit Organisations, accused the Basavaraj Bommai government of attempting to divide the society along communal lines.

Volunteers and members of the Sangh parivar attend the morning physical training class during the nine day camp organised by the RSS in Bidar.

Speaking to The Quint, Anil Beldar a Dalit activist who is part of the agitation in Bidar said, "We have opposed the camp that is being conducted by RSS and also issued a memorandum. The RSS is trying to spew venom in the name of training youth. They are indoctrinating them with hate and fuelling animosity towards communities that are not Hindu. However, neither the police, nor the district administration is taking any action against them."

The Dalit organisations have blamed the Karnataka minister for social welfare Kota Srinivas Poojary for giving permission to the RSS to conduct the training camps.

The activists also alleged that minister of state for chemicals and fertilisers Bhagwanth Khuba was the first person to lobby for the RSS and provide the office bearers security during the camps.

Similarly, in Kolar's Mulabagal, Dalit Sene and Dalit Sangharshana Samiti held a sit-in protest opposing the training camp in a public school aided by the state government.

More than 500 people belonging to different Dalit organisations marched to the school raising slogans against the RSS and demanded that the government immediately stop the camp that was being conducted in schools.

The Dalit groups which also meet every week to discuss and plan ways to combat caste-based discrimination spoke about the governing BJP not acting swiftly against those who were accused of caste atrocities.

"We understand that the police, legislators and even the district administrators are hand in glove in giving permission to the RSS. Despite this being illegal and against the constitution, those in power are favouring only a specific group. When activists and volunteers of the Dalit community want to organise and hold a meeting, we are never given permission. Why then is the RSS given permission to hold camps?"

R Mohan Raj, Dalit Leader

Meanwhile, in Uttara Kannada's Sirsi, Dalit groups opposing the RSS training camp were dismissed by the police saying that there was nothing illegal happening inside the school.

"The BJP and other Sangh Parivar organisations are constantly working towards communalising the society. Now that the elections are here, the BJP is actively targeting minorities and other marginalised groups to impose their identity on others. Today, even schools are not being spared. When we protested, we were asked to leave the premises saying that the situation was sensitive," added another volunteer from Dalit Hakkugala Samiti.

What Are the RSS Training Camps All About?

The Dalit organisations opposing the RSS camps in schools in Karnataka claim that polemical ideas are being imparted to members and volunteers of the Sangh to pit them against minority communities.

When The Quint approached a member of the RSS responsible for the organising camp in Bidar, he said that the focus of the camps was to build a nationalist identity and instill patriotism in the minds of youngsters.

The RSS which is holding training camps in Sirsi, Mulabagal, and Bidar, where over 100 youth will be trained in physical fitness and personality development, will use methods such as Yoga, Pranayanama and classes on ancient Indian history to cultivate Hindutva ideology.

Volunteers participate in the evening training camp in Bidar's Morarji Desai Residential School.

Requesting anonymity, an RSS member part of the team organising the camp in Mulabagal added:

"The training will be held between 9 October 2022 to 16 October 2022. The day begins with a prayer at 5.30 am, after which the volunteers will participate in a drill, where they will be put through intense physical endurance activities. Apart from the exercises, the volunteers will also be educated about freedom struggle, Hindutva ideology as envisaged by MS Gowalkar, and ideas of Bharata."

Stage set for the last day of the training camp in Bidar by RSS members in pubic school aided by the Karnataka government.

In an interaction with The Quint, Dalit activist Anil Beldar expressed his fear of how the RSS was increasing the divide among communities in these camps. "Our focus is not just social action. We need political change as well."

The Dalit organisations opposing the camps are also being backed by leaders belonging to Social Democratic Party of India, and the Janta Dal (Secular).

Earlier, JD(S) legislator Bandeppa Kashempur, MLA of Bidar South also wrote to Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, requesting him to stop the camp conducted by RSS in Bidar.

Joining the Dalit groups, the student wing of the Janata Dal(S) also took out procession from Ambedkar Circle to the Deputy Commissioner’s office in Bidar and staged a demonstration before submitting a memorandum demanding the suspension of officers who permitted the camp.

However, no action has been taken against the organisers of camp and the authorities who gave permission, citing that there was nothing anti-social nor illegal happening in these training camps.