On Vijayadashami 2015 (22 October 2015), Mohan Bhagwat gave the annual address at the gathering in Nagpur, where the chief guest was Dr V. K. Saraswat. This page summarises what was reported about it.
The day
- Date: 22 October 2015
- Place: Nagpur
- Address by: Mohan Bhagwat
- Chief guest: Dr V. K. Saraswat
What the address covered
Delivered in the RSS's 90th year and the 125th birth anniversary year of B. R. Ambedkar, the address, as published by the RSS and Organiser, called for a self-reliant, egalitarian Bharat. It argued against copying Western development models and favoured decentralised, sustainable growth built on farmers, small industry and skills. It called for a holistic population policy, criticised the commercialisation of education, and said lasting social change comes from changing attitudes through dialogue, not from laws alone. It sought a comprehensive policy against terrorism and threats from Pakistan and China, credited the government with raising India's international standing, and described Hindutva as an inclusive cultural identity. The text does not mention caste reservations, which Bhagwat's interview remarks had made controversial weeks earlier.
As reported
Success in any systemic change is achieved only through changing the social psyche.
Context
The speech came weeks after Bhagwat's interview call for a review of caste reservations, from which the BJP had distanced itself. The text does not mention reservations.
How sure is this?
This account rests mainly on one source, listed below; details may be incomplete.
In the archive
Sources & copyright status
- Organiser, 'Vijayadashami Speech: FULL TEXT of speech by RSS Sarsanghachalak Mohan Bhagwat - 2015' (26 Oct 2015)
- Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, 'Sarsanghachalak Vijayadashami speech 2015' (22 Oct 2015)
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