Govt slammed over live telecast of RSS chief's address

New Delhi: The live telecast of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat's address in Nagpur by Doordarshan today stoked a controversy with opposition slamming the government for "misusing" the state broadcaster while BJP defended it.

Congress spokesman Sandeep Dikshit termed the hour-long telecast as a "dangerous tradition", saying RSS is a controversial religious and political organisation.

"It is a dangerous tradition. This is not an organisation which is completely neutral. It is a controversial organisation," he said, adding it is a political decision of the government.

His party colleague Abhishek Manu Singhvi feared that from now on, the country would be ruled through the official media "for Nagpur, by Nagpur and of Nagpur".

Terming the development as "the most unfortunate, gross, blatant misuse of official government largesse and machinery," he said it as "absolutely amazing, shocking, unbelievable and unprecedented".

He contended that the broadcast has once again brought to fore the real game, character and definition of the "real" remote control.

Another Congress leader Rashid Alvi said, "this naked state majoritarianism must be resisted."

Former Union Minister Salman Khurshid said, "we do not accept the record of RSS as being above board in terms of our national aspirations".

Condemning the live broadcast, CPI(M) said, "The RSS uses the occasion propagate its Hindutva ideology. The national public broadcaster has no business to telecast live the speech of the Chief of an organisation like the RSS."

The CPI also condemned the live telecast with its National Secretary D Raja saying the government, particularly the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, should give an explanation to the people for allowing DD to be the mouthpiece for the RSS.