RSS leader's remarks unfortunate, says BJP's Goa MP

BJP leaders in Goa on Wednesday said RSS leader Subhash Velingkar's remarks on step-motherly treatment of regional languages were unfortunate and questioned his "sense of balance".

South Goa's BJP MP and party spokesperson Narendra Savoikar, in the presence of state BJP president Vinay Tendulkar, told media persons here that Velingkar had crossed all limits by hurling hurtful accusations and even calling Manohar Parrikar, a former Goa chief minister and presently the defence minister, and the Bharatiya Janata Party as "liars".

"The kind of accusations made by Velingkar, a top Sangh leader, that the BJP is a liar, that the party has cheated people and his comments about the defence minister, are sad and unfortunate. We did not expect this from him," Savoikar said.

"There is a system within the (sangh) parivar to resolve a dispute. We expect the head of the system also use the same mechanism. But it appears that the man at the helm may be losing his sense of balance," Savoikar said, daring Velingkar to quit as Goa's Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief and join active politics.

The Forum for Rights of Children to Education backed by the influential Roman Catholic Church and the Bharatiya Bhasha Suraksha Manch, supported by the RSS, have been at loggerheads in Goa over the choice of language of instruction in junior schools.

While the former supports English, the RSS-led group prefers vernacular languages.

On Tuesday, Velingkar slammed the BJP and the then chief minister Parrikar for allegedly betraying the cause of the Indian languages.

"Both Parrikar and the BJP have cheated the people of Goa," Velingkar said.