Kashmiris’ fear of losing land, jobs should be allayed: Mohan Bhagwat

New Delhi: RSS supremo Mohan Bhagwat on Tuesday claimed that the Narendra Modi government’s decision to revoke Jammu and Kashmir’s special status by abrogating Article 370 will help integrate Kashmiris with the rest of the country. He also said that efforts should be made to allay the fears of Kashmiris regarding losing their land and jobs.

Mr Bhagwat, who is the sarsanghchalak of Hindu nationalist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s parent organisation, was interacting with foreign media journalists as part of the RSS’ “continuous process” to engage in “constructive dialogue” with people from different walks of life.

During his interaction, sources said, Mr Bhagwat claimed that Article 370 was like a barrier that was being misused to alienate Kashmiris from the rest of the country. Now that it has been repealed, Kashmir will fully integrate with the rest of the country, he reportedly said.

Article 370, which granted special status and a degree of autonomy to J&K, specified that except for defence, foreign affairs and communications, the Indian Parliament needs the state government’s concurrence on all other matters. Till August 5 this year, J&K’s residents lived under a separate set of laws, including those related to ownership of property.

When asked about apprehensions that the government’s decision to do away with Article 370 will lead to “outsiders” buying land in Kashmir, Mr Bhagwat, it is learnt, said, “Whatever fears they have about losing land and jobs should be allayed.”

Asserying that “Hindutva” is all about unity in diversity, Mr Bhagwat said that India is the only home for Hindus in the world, and the National Register of Citizens (NRC), currently being implemented in Assam, is not about expelling people but about identifying citizens. Reiterating the RSS’ support to a Uniform Civil Code, Mr Bhagwat added that efforts should be made to create a consensus on the issue.

Mr Bhagwat also answered queries on the organisation’s stand on homosexuality and lynching.

Condemning all forms of violence, Mr Bhagwat said that if a swayamsevak is found guilty of being involved in mob lynching, he would be disowned. He called homosexuality a “variation” and not an “abnormality” and added that homosexuals should be treated as equal human beings and integrated into society.

With the Modi led NDA government facing Oppositions’ wrath over economic indicators, Mr Bhagwat, sources said, claimed that there was “no policy paralysis” but also clarified that the RSS is not an expert on the issue.

Apart from Mr Bhagwat, RSS general secretary Suresh (Bhaiyyaji) Joshi, joint general secretaries Manmohan Vaidya and Krishan Gopal, RSS northern region in-charge Bajrang Lal Gupt and its Delhi unit head Kulbhushan Ahuja were present in the interaction which lasted for more than two hours.

Later in the evening, at an event to launch a report on the “Status of Women in India,” Mr Bhagwat said that no man has the power to uplift a woman. “For women’s upliftment, men first need awakening,” he said.

The report, which surveyed 43,000 women across the country, claims that a highest percentage of married women experience “very high” and “high level” of happiness, whereas women in live-in relationships are not so happy.

The survey, which found that family income has no influence on women’s level of happiness and well-being, stated that women in spiritual fields experience the “highest level of happiness”.

Of the total number of women surveyed, only .07 percent were in live-in relationships.

The survey also found that literacy rate has increased among women, while Christian women were found to have higher percentage of employment, followed by Hindus, Buddhist and Muslims.

Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who was also present at the event, asked women to come out of their comfort zone to take up challenges, while asserting that women do not need token participation when it comes to decision-making processes.

Under the survey, 26 separate studies were conducted in addition to the overall assessment of health, education and employment of women.