BJP leader writes to Prez, seeks Bharat Ratna for Hedgewar

BJP leader Jamal Siddiqui urges President Murmu to award Bharat Ratna to RSS founder Keshav Hedgewar for his role in India's freedom and nation-building.

Bharatiya Janata Party leader and the head of the party’s minority wing , Jamal Siddiqui has written to President Droupadi Murmu, asking her to consider conferring India’s highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna on Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, the founder of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, which is celebrating its centenary.

BJP leader writes to Prez, seeks Bharat Ratna for Hedgewar

Referring to Hedgewar as “a great freedom fighter and the architect of nation-building,” Siddiqui said that by honouring him India would not only acknowledge his “invaluable contribution” but will also instill the ideals of nationalism among the youth.

Born in 1889, Hedgewar during his medical studies in then Calcutta, joined the revolutionary front the Anushilan Samiti, where he was influenced by thinkers such as Bagha Jatin, Prafulla Chaki, and Barindra Ghosh. He founded the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in 1925 on the Vijaydasahmi Day.

In his letter Siddiqui said, “In 1921, for his speeches in Katol and Hinganghat, the British government arrested him on charges of sedition and sentenced him to one year in prison. Similarly, in 1930, in connection with the Jungle Satyagraha, he was again imprisoned for nine months, but his resolve remained firm and he said ‘India belongs to Indians; we demand complete independence’...”