New Delhi: Having long framed its fight with the RSS in sharply ideological terms, the Congress on Friday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of committing a “blatant breach of the spirit of a constitutional, secular republic” by praising the organisation during his Independence Day address from the ramparts of the Red Fort.
The principal opposition party also suggested that Modi’s remarks were aimed at appeasing the RSS, an organisation it described as representing a legacy “not of fighting colonialism but of spreading hate and division among fellow Indians”, as he remains “reliant” on its support for an extension of his tenure beyond 17 September, when he turns 75.
Congress General Secretary (Communications) Jairam Ramesh said the PM’s remarks amounted to politicisation of Independence Day for “personal and organisational gain”, which, he said, was deeply corrosive to India’s democratic ethos.
“The most troubling element of the PM’s speech today was his name-checking of the RSS from the ramparts of the Red Fort. Decisively weakened after the events of June 4th, 2024, he is now at their complete mercy and reliant on Mohan Bhagwat’s good offices for the extension of his tenure after September,” Ramesh said in a statement.
Ramesh was essentially echoing Rahul Gandhi, whose deeply critical view of the RSS has formed the core of the Congress’s official line. Rahul frequently frames the party’s political struggle as an ideological battle against the RSS, which he argues embodies a worldview fundamentally at odds with India’s civilisational ethos.
No Rahul or Kharge at Red Fort
Neither Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi nor Congress president and Rajya Sabha Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge were present at the Red Fort during the Prime Minister’s Independence Day address. In 2024, Rahul had attended the ceremony but was seated near the back, sparking controversy.
Kharge hoisted the Tricolour at the Congress’s new headquarters, Indira Bhavan, on Delhi’s Kotla Marg amid heavy rain. Rahul also joined the ceremony as rain poured down. There was no official word from the Congress on the absence of Rahul and Kharge at the Red Fort ceremony.
In his speech, Kharge, referring to the party’s ongoing campaign against alleged voter list fraud, made an appeal to Congress leaders and workers to obtain and closely examine electoral rolls at the booth level.
“Check how many names have been removed, or declared dead, or deliberately shifted to another booth as part of a conspiracy. How many outsiders’ names are being added? Or where the same Voter ID Card has been added multiple times. A new issue has come to light: a day before the election, a new Voter List is sent under the guise of an additional list, which candidates cannot verify due to lack of time,” he said.
Meanwhile, on Friday, the Congress was also sharply critical of a Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas social media post on Independence Day featuring the images of Mahatma Gandhi, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Bhagat Singh alongside that of Veer Savarkar.
In the post, Savarkar’s photo was placed above the rest. “No matter how hard you try, Mr. Modi, you can’t push Mahatma, Netaji & Bhagat Singh below Mafiveer. Don’t disgrace the martyrs who fought and died for freedom by glorifying those who begged the British with apology letters,” Congress chief whip in the Lok Sabha Manickam Tagore posted on X.
Tagore also lashed out at the PM for praising RSS in his Red Fort speech.
“The RSS, founded in 1925, did not play a direct role in India’s Independence struggle. It stayed away from the Civil Disobedience Movement, Quit India Movement, and other mass protests against British rule. K.B. Hedgewar, its founder, had joined Congress protests before 1925. But after forming RSS, the focus shifted to “cultural nationalism”—not confronting colonial power…” Tagore wrote on X.
Congress General Secretary (Organisation) K.C. Venugopal also voiced strong disapproval of the ministry’s social media post.
“Every Independence Day, the Modi-led BJP makes it a point to distort history and make heroes out of traitors. This Orwellian image, elevating a British mercy petitioner like Savarkar over Gandhi ji – the undisputed Mahatma who got us freedom, and completely eliminating Pandit Nehru and Sardar Patel ji, shows their contempt for our freedom fighters. What else can one except from those whose forefathers collaborated with the British to sow the seeds of division and hatred that haunts us to this very day?” Venugopal wrote on X.
(Edited by Vidhi Bhutra)
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