Sangh is virtuous incarnation of eternal national consciousness: PM Modi at RSS centenary celebrations
Prime Minister Narendra Modi joined the big 100-year celebrations for the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in New Delhi on Wednesday, calling the group a “virtuous incarnation” of India’s timeless national spirit. He highlighted how the RSS has shaped every corner of the country over the past century.
The RSS kicked off in 1925 in Nagpur, thanks to Dr. Keshav Baliram Hedgewar. It started as a volunteer network focused on building cultural pride, discipline, and community service. Today, it stands as one of India’s top socio-cultural forces.
Key figures at the event included RSS General Secretary Dattatreya Hosabale, Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, and Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta.
Modi kicked off his speech at the Dr. Ambedkar International Centre by honoring late BJP leader Vijay Kumar Malhotra, who died Tuesday at age 93, and paying tribute to RSS founder Hedgewar.
He tied the occasion to Navratri, noting Wednesday marked Goddess Siddhidatri’s day and sending wishes to everyone. Looking ahead to Vijayadashmi on Thursday—the festival celebrating good triumphing over evil—Modi said the RSS’s founding exactly 100 years ago felt like no accident. “National consciousness rises in different ways to face each era’s challenges,” he added. “In our time, the Sangh embodies that eternal spirit, and we’re lucky to see its centenary.”
To mark the milestone, Modi unveiled a special commemorative postage stamp and a Rs 100 coin spotlighting the RSS’s role in nation-building.
The coin features India’s National Emblem on one side and, for the first time ever on post-independence currency, an image of Bharat Mata in her Varada Mudra blessing pose. It also shows a lion and a dedicated RSS swayamsevak bowing in respect.
As for the stamp, it captures a proud moment from 1963 when RSS volunteers marched in the Republic Day Parade. “Stamps hold deep meaning, just like those parades,” Modi said.
He praised how the RSS has enriched lives nationwide, much like a river nurturing communities along its banks. “The Sangh reaches every part of India,” he noted, emphasizing its many affiliates all united under the motto “Nation First”—with no internal clashes.
Over the last 100 years, the RSS and its groups have stepped up big in education, healthcare, social services, and disaster response. Volunteers have rushed to the front lines during floods, earthquakes, cyclones, and other crises, helping with relief and rebuilding efforts.
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