RSS to hold guru pujan in slums today

LUCKNOW: The Rashtriya Swayemsewak Sangh is poised is celebrating on Friday their annual ‘Guru pujan’ programme across 350 slum dwellings where they hold shakhas or similar events. “The aim of the ceremony is to uphold the guru-shishya parampara (teacher-taught tradition),” said RSS, Lucknow Vibhag pramukh Prashant Bhatia. It is part of the annual guru dakshina ritual as part of which all RSS men offer gifts, flowers, money and sometimes volunteer time for service as per their capability or convenience, added Bhatia.
Another senior RSS functionary told TOI that money collected during the programme is the main source of finances. After the collection, the sangh allocates budget for various prants, he added.
The programme begins with Guru pujan at slums, which are inhabited mostly by either Dalits or members of Other Backward Classes. Asked if there was a political agenda in holding the programme to help the Sangh Parivar connect with the Dalits through the programme, the RSS functionaries denied, saying they were only following an annual ritual.
The programme would include people from slums offering respects to their gurus and it will be followed by a lecture (‘Bauddhik’, as per RSS terminology) of around 30 minutes. The swayemsewaks will inform slum dwellers about various tasks undertaken by the RSS and make them aware about various aspects of the organisation.