Karnataka home minister Priyank Kharge has hit back at BJP MP Ramesh Jigajinagi, accusing him of suggesting that Dalits have no right to question the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
The remarks came a day after Jigajinagi said that 'those who have taken on RSS have not survived', amid an ongoing debate over the Sangh's legal status.
Kharge has argued that an organisation with such an extensive national presence should be held to the same standards of transparency and constitutional accountability as other public bodies.
He has written to RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat seeking details of the organisation's registration, office bearers, sources of income, expenditure, assets and tax compliance.
Jigajinagi questioned both Kharge's campaign against the RSS and his reasons for pursuing it, saying that 'those who have taken on RSS have not survived'. He also dismissed Kharge's demand that the RSS should get registered formally.
Kharge responded by saying that he is a follower of B R Ambedkar and that his courage to question and his conviction come from him.
'Those who believe in Babasaheb do not know fear,' he added.
