Tezzbuzz Desk: The war of words between Congress and BJP regarding Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has intensified in Karnataka. State Home Minister Priyank Kharge, in response to a question asked in the Legislative Council, said that there is no case registered against RSS regarding communal riots or any other crime. After this, BJP targeted Kharge and raised questions about the reply of his own department.
Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council, Chalavadi Narayanaswami, had sought from the government records of cases registered against the RSS, its alleged role in communal violence and any untoward incidents that occurred during route marches and daily meetings. In response to this, Home Minister Priyank Kharge said in writing that no such case has been registered.
BJP attacked Kharge regarding this answer. Narayanaswamy said government records have made it clear that there is no record of any case or untoward incident against the RSS. He alleged that despite this, Kharge has been continuously targeting the Sangh.
Narayanaswami said that the minister holding the responsibility of the Home Department should pay attention to the law and order of the state. He also asked Kharge that when no case has been registered against the RSS in the records of his own department, then why are political statements being made continuously about the RSS.
BJP MLA and former minister Sunil Kumar also cornered Kharge on this issue. In December 2025, he met the then Home Minister G. Citing Parmeshwar's answer given in the Assembly, he said that the answers of two different Home Ministers also put forward the same thing regarding RSS.
Karnataka BJP took a dig at Kharge on social media, saying that despite so much resentment towards an organisation, the official record of the Home Department itself answered his claims. The party also said that the most interesting thing is that this reply is signed by the Home Minister himself.
At the same time, Priyank Kharge, while responding to BJP's allegations, raised questions on the legal status of RSS. He said RSS is not a registered organization and has no formal legal structure. In such a situation, instead of registering a crime in the name of the organization, cases are registered against the individuals involved in the alleged crime.
Kharge said that if BJP asks the right questions about RSS, it may put the organization itself in a difficult situation. He demanded the RSS to register itself formally and come under a transparent legal framework.
The Home Minister also said that the organization should make public information related to its accounts, assets, funding and liabilities. Raising the issue of accountability and transparency regarding RSS, he also targeted BJP.
After this entire controversy, the rhetoric between Congress and BJP regarding RSS in Karnataka politics has intensified. On one hand, BJP is raising questions on Kharge on the basis of government records, while on the other hand, Kharge is continuously raising questions regarding the formal legal status and accountability of RSS.