Saints Must Uphold Truth and Moral Integrity, Says Indresh Kumar

Senior RSS leader Indresh Kumar has vehemently denied allegations made by Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, calling them “completely false, misleading and insulting.” The controversy erupted after the Shankaracharya of Jyotirmath made serious accusations against Kumar in a video that has been circulating on social media.

In the footage, Swami Avimukteshwaranand claimed he met Kumar at an airport lounge, where the RSS pracharak allegedly admitted that through the Muslim Rashtriya Manch—an organization Kumar convenes—approximately one million Hindu girls had been married into Muslim families. The Shankaracharya characterized this as a “betrayal of Hindu society” and accused the RSS of playing a “double game.”

Kumar, a senior figure in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and convenor of the Muslim Rashtriya Manch, has responded firmly to these claims. He emphasized that in India, the tradition of reverence towards saints and sannyasis has always been a matter of deep faith, and that the RSS holds all saints in high regard. However, he maintained that invoking his name in such a manner was inappropriate and without foundation.

“False statements do not befit the dignity of saints,” Kumar stated, urging that the allegations be withdrawn to preserve the purity and decorum expected in social life. He reiterated that the RSS has consistently been an organization that respects India’s saintly traditions, making the remarks not only untrue but also “unconstitutional and inhumane.”

This controversy highlights ongoing tensions between different religious and cultural institutions in India. The RSS, founded in 1925, is one of India’s most influential Hindu nationalist organizations and is considered the ideological parent of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). It has often positioned itself as a defender of Hindu interests while also making efforts to reach out to other communities, including Muslims.

The Muslim Rashtriya Manch, established in 2002, represents one such outreach effort. The organization aims to foster nationalist sentiment among Indian Muslims and build bridges between Muslim communities and the broader Hindu-majority society. Critics, however, have questioned the authenticity of these efforts, suggesting they may be attempts to assimilate rather than accommodate Muslim identity.

Interfaith marriages remain a sensitive topic in India, often becoming flashpoints for social and political tension. In recent years, several states governed by the BJP have passed legislation restricting religious conversion in the context of marriage, responding to concerns about what some Hindu organizations term “love jihad”—an alleged campaign to convert Hindu women through marriage, a concept that many scholars and activists dismiss as unfounded.

Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati occupies a significant position in Hindu religious hierarchy. As Shankaracharya of Jyotirmath, he is one of four primary religious leaders in the Advaita Vedanta tradition established by Adi Shankaracharya in the 8th century.

The public disagreement between these two influential figures—one representing a major Hindu nationalist organization and the other a traditional religious authority—reflects broader debates about the relationship between religious identity, nationalism, and social cohesion in contemporary India.

Neither Swami Avimukteshwaranand nor representatives of Jyotirmath have yet responded to Kumar’s denial or his request for a withdrawal of the allegations. As the controversy unfolds, it may have implications for relationships between various Hindu religious institutions and nationalist organizations like the RSS, which have traditionally maintained cooperative but sometimes complex relations.