New Delhi: While the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) maintains social media accounts across platforms, its chief Mohan Bhagwat does not have any such accounts. When asked about the reason behind this aloofness, Bhagwat issued a word of advice and observed that such platforms are all about "me, my and mine".
Bhagwat observed, “Social media means me, my and mine and that I have to express my opinion on each and every issue.”
During an interaction with the editors of ‘Organiser’ and ‘Panchjanya’, two RSS-affiliated publications, Bhagwat explained that people often try to assert their opinion on others with their social media posts and “even after knowing that my opinion is part of a collective whole”, without waiting for the collective opinion, “the person ends up talking about his personal beliefs on social media.”
Asked about his thoughts on the utility, usage of mobile apps and social media, the RSS ‘sarsanghchalak’ cautioned that people should understand the limitations and side-effects of such platforms.
Bhagwat also observed that they often lead to misunderstandings and people are then forced to take the pain of deleting the offensive posts.
The RSS chief even found faults with the name of ‘Facebook’. He said that just the name Facebook suggests that it is a platform “for your face as an individual and therefore tends to make you more self-centric”.
He added, “Self-projection has its limited importance at an individual level but none at an organisational level.”
Therefore, he added, “The Sangh has its Facebook page and Twitter account, but not mine, and I will never have them. People working in the political field have a greater value for these platforms but they also should use it with caution. We should not be slaves of technology. We should use them in limited proportions.”
The Sangh head was also asked about his perception of the presence of the right-wing organisation in the virtual world, to which he said, “This is only logical. Even though we stay a few steps behind the society regarding the use of resources and facilities, still we walk with the society. It is a deliberate decision.”
Bhagwat went back to the times when RSS was still in its formation days to make his point. He said, “At first we used to travel on foot and then vehicles were provided. We have seen the times when in the whole of Nagpur, the Sangh had just one vehicle, which was kept for Sri Guruji’s use. Those were the days when the use of vehicles was very limited in the society, so maybe three or four swayamsevaks had cars or motorcycles. For others, bicycle was the most affordable vehicle.”
With the changing social conditions, many swayamsevaks have vehicles now. “This is a normal process. We make sure that we do not become slaves of these comforts and the side-effects of them do not enter the organisation,” he added.
Comments
0 comment