BJP Leader Rejects RSS Registration Amid Karnataka Law Dispute

BJP National General Secretary (Organisation) B.L. Santhosh declared that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is not registered and will not register in the future. Speaking at an Akhand Bharat Sankalp Day event in Bengaluru on August 15, Santhosh responded to the Karnataka Regulation of Use of Government Premises and Public Property Bill, 2026. The BJP alleges the legislation is designed to restrict RSS activities, while Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge has questioned if the bill even mentions the organization.

The dispute escalated into a historical debate over the integration of the Hyderabad State. Santhosh claimed RSS workers protected the family of Rajya Sabha Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge from Razakar attacks during Partition. He argued that the idea of an undivided India is a nationalist dream and that the RSS operates through the trust of millions rather than formal registration.

Home Minister Priyank Kharge rejected these assertions, stating that the liberation of the Hyderabad-Karnataka region was the result of the Indian Army and leaders like Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Jawaharlal Nehru. Kharge accused the RSS of inciting communal violence during Partition and following the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, challenging the organization to identify any statue of an RSS leader installed by the public on their own initiative.