Team Herald
PANJIM: Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Goa Prant, the rebel group formed by former RSS Goa chief Subhash Velingkar, who was sacked recently, will hold a one-day convention on September 11 to decide its future strategy on the Medium of Instruction (MoI) issue.
Interacting with reporters, Velingkar said, said the convention will chalk out programmes to strengthen the stir on MoI.
“The meet will press for regional languages such as Konkani and Marathi to be made the MoI in schools and stopping of the state support to English medium institutions,” he said, adding “The meet would also reach out to women to join the mother tongue campaign under the banner of Bharatiya Bhasha Suraksha Manch (BBSM).”
As the convener of BBSM, Velingkar had taken on the Goa’s BJP government over its support to English-medium schools and was ousted from his post as Goa unit chief of RSS on August 31.
“Besides various other agenda, we will also deliberate on involving more women in this cause,” Velingkar said.
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, who is in Goa to celebrate Ganesh festival, was expected to break the stalemate between the BBSM and BJP, but nothing has happened so far.
“BBSM has not received any communication from Parrikar. There is no question of supporting the BJP as they have not fulfilled our main demand of withdrawing grants to English medium schools,” Velingkar said.
He rubbished reports that attempts were being made to restore ties between BBSM and the BJP.
“There are no (such) attempts (being made),” he said.
Velingkar was “relieved” as Goa RSS chief on August 31 after BBSM hinted at its intent to float a political party to counter BJP in the 2017 Goa Assembly polls.
His supporters had detached themselves from the Konkan Prant of RSS, and had formed ‘Goa Prant’, which the RSS senior leadership had refused to recognise.
Velingkar has locked horns with the BJP government headed by Laxmikant Parsekar over the MoI issue, with members of his outfit even showing black flags to party chief Amit Shah during his recent visit to the state.
He had recently said the “Sangh unit” in the coastal state will function “independently”, at least till the Assembly polls.
However, RSS had been quick to debunk him, saying none of its units can dissociate from the outfit and new office-bearers for Goa will be announced soon.
