New Delhi: Clashes arise among the affiliates of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, over the recent issues of monetisation policies of the government, the delay in addressing concerns over high inflation, and against the formal engagement of Union ministry with the Taliban regime in Afghanistan.
Subsidiaries of RSS, including The Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), one of the largest labour unions, at its national executive, has already passed a resolution against price rise and asked the government to take remedial steps, regarding to price hike of day-to-day necessities. ‘The situation has worsened after covid. Workers are the most affected by job cuts and wage cuts and there is no control over inflation,’ general secretary of the BMS, Binay Kumar Sinha, publicly criticised.
BMS has also called for a nationwide protest against inflation on September 9, and has also suggested that apart from mentioning the selling price of products, the government should introduce provisions, where the cost of production is also mentioned on the label so that people are aware of the profits that companies are making. ‘For instance, in the pharma sector, there is no control over how much profits they can make. Similarly, if the government has been talking of one nation, one tax, why not bring petrol under GST to prevent everyday fluctuations that affect the lives of the common man? We have also been demanding that edible oils and other food items should also be brought under the domain of the Essential Commodities Act to prevent hoarding and black marketing,’ Sinha explained.
Swadeshi Jagran Manch, another RSS affiliate that pushes for indigenous production and opposes privatisation and disinvestment, has also criticized the NMP programme worth ?6-lakh crore, unveiled by Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman. ‘A quick assessment shows there will be practical problems in the implementation of the monetisation policy since there are so many assets involved. Besides, the government itself claims that the use of technology has cut inefficiencies. For example, after the use of FastTags, revenue losses have been plugged, so where is the need for monetisation if technology can come in handy to plug losses and improve efficiency?’ SJM questioned.
RSS leaders have also expressed dissent on official meeting with Taliban delegates at Doha last week, even though they appreciated government’s efforts successful evacuating Hindus and Sikhs from Afghanistan.