RSS growing popular among youth: Sangh official

The RSS is growing popular among the youth with 90 per cent of participants at its 'shakhas' across the country below the age of 45, a Sangh functionary today claimed.
As much as 53 per cent of the total participants in daily shakhas of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) are students, RSS Joint President of Delhi unit Alok Kumar said.
"At present, 57,185 shakhas are being organised daily at 36,729 locations across the country. And 90 per cent of the participants in these shakhas are below the age of 45 years," Kumar said.
Around 1,805 'shakhas' are being organised daily in AAP-ruled Delhi and the number is likely to be increased by 15 per cent in coming days, he added.

Kumar also informed that in last one year 1.4 lakh youth have opted for RSS' primary training of one year.
Sharing details about RSS' recently held Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha at Coimbatore, Kumar said that the Sangh passed resolutions expressing concern over violence instigated by anti-national elements in Kerala and West Bengal.

Accusing Mamata Banerjee-led government in West Bengal of encouraging jehadi groups and anti-national elements in the state, Kumar claimed that the Hindu population in the state is declining due to TMC's Muslim vote bank politics.
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Talking about eminent poet Srijato Bandyopadhyay
getting threat calls from unknown persons for writing a poem allegedly hurting Hindu sentiments, Basu said, "I will request the police to look into who all are threatening the poet and take appropriate action against them as per the IPC."

Saying that "in a democratic country like India, one has the right, and the freedom to express himself. But as per the Indian Constitution one must not forget that someone's freedom was not hampering the freedom of another person," Basu questioned why Bandyopadhyay's pen was silent when alleged jihadi incidents took place in Kaliachak, Dhulagarh, Nadia and Burdwan blasts.
A Hindutva group on Wednesday lodged a police complaint against the poet Srijato for allegedly hurting "Hindu sentiments and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath" in a Facebook post.
Yesterday, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee stood beside the poet and said that a particular political party, which has taken up "saffronising", was behind lodging the complaint and threatening the poet on a social networking site.

The Kolkata Police has provided bodyguards to the poet after he lodged a complaint with the police alleging that he was getting threat calls from unknown persons.