RSS Axes Goa Chief for Acting Against BJP Government

New Delhi: The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) on Wednesday removed its Goa chief, Subhash Velingkar, for working against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the state.

“Velingkar has been removed from his post with immediate effect for faulting a political outfit and working against the Goa government,” RSS publicity head Manmohan Vaidya told IANS.
Bharatiya Bhasha Suraksha Manch (BBSM), an outfit led by Velingkar, has been demanding that regional languages (Konkani and Marathi) be made the medium of instruction in Goa’s elementary schools and asking the state to stop grants of English medium schools.

Velingkar was removed from his post after BJP President Amit Shah complained against him to the RSS leadership, informed sources said.
Shah was shown black flags by members of the outfit during his recent visit to Goa. He was on his way to address a meeting of BJP workers near Panaji.
Critical of the Laxmikant Parsekar-led BJP government, Velingkar accused the state government of betraying the electorate’s trust.

He also said that the chances of the BJP winning the upcoming Goa assembly elections were bleak.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which has said it will contest the Goa elections, had been using Velingkar’s criticism of the state government in its campaign.

Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar expressed regret over the unceremonious removal of Subhash Velingkar as the state RSS chief.
The chief minister initially refused to comment on the sacking of Velingkar, the state’s seniormost swayamsevak by the RSS. But when pressed to comment as a swayamsevak himself, Parsekar said: “As a swayamsevak I would say it should not have happened.”

Velingkar, who heads a regional language front, has been critical of the state government’s medium of instruction policy in primary schools, which he claims promotes English language over regional languages like Konkani and Marathi.
Velingkar in the recent past had said that the state BJP governments under Manohar Parrikar and Parsekar had cheated the people on the issue of medium of instruction.

He had also warned that the BJP may lose the 2017 assembly elections because of this reason.
Velingkar was also accused of showing black flags to BJP President Amit Shah during the latter’s visit to the state on August 20.

Source: IANS