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RSS Wants Government To Rejig Population Policy Over Drop In Share Of Hindus

RSS Wants Government To Rejig Population Policy Over Drop In Share Of Hindus
An Indian student with a peace message painted on his face attends a peace rally on the 65th death anniversary of 'father of the nation' Mahtama Gandhi, in Mumbai on January 30, 2013. Students and people from various walks of life took part in the rally for peace and communal harmony. AFP PHOTO/Indranil MUKHERJEE (Photo credit should read INDRANIL MUKHERJEE/AFP/Getty Images)
INDRANIL MUKHERJEE via Getty Images
An Indian student with a peace message painted on his face attends a peace rally on the 65th death anniversary of 'father of the nation' Mahtama Gandhi, in Mumbai on January 30, 2013. Students and people from various walks of life took part in the rally for peace and communal harmony. AFP PHOTO/Indranil MUKHERJEE (Photo credit should read INDRANIL MUKHERJEE/AFP/Getty Images)

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh on Saturday passed a resolution asking the government to 'reformulate' India's population policy due to "higher growth" in Muslim and Christian population. Citing figures from the Census on Religions 2011, that was made public by the government earlier this year, the RSS further attributed the fall in the share of Hindus and rise in Muslim percentages, to "infiltration and conversion."

The policy statement, declared in Ranchi, also noted that “infiltrators are usurping the rights of the citizens” and were “becoming a heavy burden on the already scant resources, apart from creating socio-cultural, political and economic tensions”.

Senior RSS leader, Mohan Bhagwat had also broached the issue in his annual Vijayadashami speech last week. “Facts and figures of last two census reports and imbalances that have come to notice as a result are being widely discussed. Our present and future is getting impacted by the same… We need to rise above vote bank politics to formulate a holistic approach, equally applicable to all citizens, towards the population policy,” he had said.

The RSS meet, specifically called to discuss recent Census population data by religious communities, noted that "Bharatiya origin (Hindu, Buddhist, Jain and Sikh)" had declined to 83.8% from 88% in 1951 whereas the spurt in Muslim growth rate, particularly in some areas of the north-east, point to "unnatural growth".

Calling for uniform population policy for all communities, RSS joint general secretary Krishna Gopal said, "If religion prevents one from opting for family planning norms, we must go by the nationalist spirit and formulate a policy keeping under consideration available resources of the country." Gopal said the Supreme Court on a number of occasions has stressed the constitutional necessity for a uniform civil code.

The RSS resolution assumes significance in light of communal skirmishes as well as protests by intellectuals and writers that the state was not doing enough to reign in religious bigotry.

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.