RSS clears stance on same-sex marriage; Hosabale replies to Rahul Gandhi’s ‘fascist’ remark

Dattatreya Hosabale, general secretary of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh or RSS on Tuesday said the organisation agrees with the Centre’s view on same-sex marriage and claimed that marriage can only take place between persons of opposite genders.

The Centre has opposed in the Supreme Court a batch of petitions seeking legal validation of same-sex marriages, claiming they will cause a “complete havoc” with the delicate balance of personal laws and accepted societal values.

On Monday, the Supreme Court referred the pleas seeking legal validation of same-sex marriages to a five-judge constitution bench for adjudication, saying it is a “very seminal issue”.

“Marriage can only take place between persons of opposite genders. The Sangh agrees with the government’s view on same-sex marriage,” news agency PTI quoted Hosabale as saying.

When asked about Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s criticism of the RSS, Hosabale said, “I think there is no reason to comment on it. They follow their own political agenda. Everyone knows the reality of the RSS. As a prominent leader of the Opposition, he should express more responsibility.”

In London, Rahul Gandhi recently had termed the RSS a “fundamentalist, fascist organisation” that has changed the nature of the democratic contest in India by capturing the country’s institutions.

“The identity of India which has been a thing of pride for all who participated in the national freedom struggle has to be presented before the world in today’s time. In the next 25 years, India has to not only develop economically and infrastructurally but also n many other areas like sports and culture,” the
RSS general secretary said.

He added that the expansion of RSS shakhas at the mandal-level is key. The 2025 centenary celebrations of the RSS will begin from Vijayadashami in 2024.