Only a hindu can head RSS; caste not a factor: Mohan Bhagwat

New Delhi: Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat on Sunday said he would step down from the post of Sarsanghchalak whenever the organisation directs him to do so, even as he underlined that caste would not be a factor in choosing his successor and that only a Hindu can head the Sangh.

Speaking at a session in Mumbai during a programme marking the RSS' centenary, Bhagwat said he had informed the organisation about stepping down after completing 75 years, but was asked to continue working. "Whenever RSS asks me to step down, I will do so. Retirement from work will never happen," he said. Bhagwat said there is no election to the post of RSS chief and that the appointment is made by regional and divisional heads. The position, he said, goes to the "best available candidate," depending on availability at the time.

Rejecting community-based representation, Bhagwat said the RSS does not follow caste-based considerations and that swayamsevaks rise through the ranks based on their work. However, he reiterated that the Sarsanghchalak must be a Hindu, irrespective of caste. "Being from the Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe is not a disqualification, and being a Brahmin is not a qualification," he said. Bhagwat also said that English would never be the primary medium of communication for RSS functioning, calling it a non-Indian language. "We use English wherever necessary, but we should not forget our mother tongue," he said.