RSS mouthpiece Organiser backs Mohan Bhagwat’s temple-mosque stance, calls for ‘civilisational justice’ in Sambhal controversy

The RSS-affiliated magazine Organiser clarified on Thursday that it stands firmly for social harmony and fully supports RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s recent remarks cautioning against the escalation of temple-mosque disputes.

In a statement, the magazine’s editor, Prafulla Ketkar, emphasised alignment with Bhagwat’s vision of unity. “Organiser stands for social harmony… We fully endorse Pujaniya Sarsanghachalak Ji’s articulation of Bharat as a model of social harmony, which is essential for becoming Vishwaguru. The attempt to pit Organiser editorial against Param Pujaniya Sarsanghchalak Dr Mohan Bhagwat’s speech is unwarranted,” Ketkar stated.

The December 29 issue of Organiser includes an editorial arguing for the importance of uncovering the historical truths behind disputed religious sites, describing it as a step toward achieving “civilisational justice.” This editorial coincided with a cover story on the Sambhal mosque controversy, where the magazine claimed that a temple once stood on the site of the Shahi Jama Masjid in Uttar Pradesh and detailed the town’s communal tensions.

Bhagwat, however, had earlier urged restraint, stating during a December 19 speech in Pune that while the Ram Temple in Ayodhya was a matter of faith, it was “unacceptable” to stir up new disputes daily, driven by “hatred, malice, and enmity.”

Significantly, Organiser’s editorial and cover story avoided directly addressing Bhagwat’s caution, focusing instead on the demand for historical accountability regarding religious spaces altered through invasions. The editorial likened this pursuit to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s approach to resolving caste-based discrimination, suggesting, “We need a similar framework to address religious disharmony.”

Ketkar dismissed any contradiction between Bhagwat’s speech and the editorial, calling it a “misrepresented controversy.” He clarified that the editorial, tied to a ground report on December 18, was separate in context from Bhagwat’s December 19 address, asserting, “Linking the two is inappropriate and unwarranted.”