The BJP on Friday circulated a press release from RSS in Parliament, shedding pretensions of being distinct and separate from the organisation.
BJP’s distribution of an RSS press release raises eyebrows
NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday circulated a press release from Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in Parliament, shedding pretensions of being distinct and separate from the organisation.
The release, a statement issued by RSS general secretary Mohanrao Bhagwat, speaks of violence by CPI(M) cadres against RSS workers in Kerala. To buttress its argument and counter CPI(M) which had named a dozen of its workers killed by RSS since 2006, the RSS said 60 of its workers had been killed so far in Kannur alone.
Bhagwat did not issue any list, however, naming only the five killed in the recent violence. He said the RSS had started work in Kannur in 1943 and had continued peacefully for 25 years.
The first killing, in which present CPI(M) state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan was the main accused, happened in 1969, said Bhagwat. Kerala home minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan was also an accused in the murder of another RSS worker, he added.
The BJP has been criticising the CPI(M) for attacks against RSS and BJP workers, once again blurring the distinction between the two outfits and members from other parties have spoken about this in parliament.
That the BJP still chose to take it one step further by issuing a RSS statement at a press conference by BJP deputy leader in Lok Sabha VK Malhotra created a buzz in parliament.
RSS spokesman Ram Madhav also seemed surprised at this, saying, “Was it (the release) given out in parliament? We had issued the statement at our meeting in Vrindavan and given it to the media centre for release in Delhi. They must have taken it to parliament and distributed it there.”
s_rajesh@dnaindia.net 
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