Vice President hails RSS’ legacy of service and nation-building

Vice President C. P. Radhakrishnan on Friday released the book RSS @100: A Century of Service, Unity & Sacrifice in New Delhi, describing the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) as an organisation that has strengthened the ideals of service, unity and national consciousness over the past century. Addressing the gathering, the Vice President said it was a personal honour to participate in the release of a book marking the RSS centenary, recalling his long association with the organisation. Referring to a Tamil poem on the Sangh, he said it compares the RSS to the holy Ganga, flowing selflessly for the welfare of others and symbolising the spirit of service that has guided the organisation throughout its journey. Highlighting the organisation’s emphasis on character-building, V-P Radhakrishnan said the RSS’s daily shakhas nurture leadership and national character. Quoting from the book, he described the shakha as “a workshop of the soul where the raw energy of youth is chiselled into national character.”

'The RSS has also consistently emphasized the importance of character-building and leadership development' : Vice President Shri C. P. Radhakrishnan pic.twitter.com/5SvIklclqv

— Vice-President of India (@VPIndia) July 17, 2026

Recalling a conversation with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, the Vice President noted that both had begun their public lives as grassroots workers associated with the movement inspired by Jayaprakash Narayan’s Total Revolution. Comparing the RSS’s growth to the Ganga, which begins as a small stream before becoming a mighty river, he said the organisation has grown from humble beginnings into one of the world’s largest voluntary organisations.Singh said that the Sangh's ideology is based not on discrimination, but on cultural integration and national unity. The Sangh's thought goes beyond 'tolerancism' to 'respectism', he said.

100 वर्षों से राष्ट्र और समाज की सेवा में समर्पित राष्ट्रीय स्वयंसेवक संघ के बारे में अनेक मिथक फैलाए गए। लेकिन सत्य यह है कि संघ की विचारधारा भेदभाव नहीं, बल्कि सांस्कृतिक एकात्मता और राष्ट्रीय एकता पर आधारित है। संघ का विचार 'सहिष्णुतावाद' से भी आगे 'सम्मानवाद' का है। pic.twitter.com/yK25LAmWqc

— Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) July 17, 2026

The book, authored by Shyam Jaju and Anupam Trivedi, chronicles the RSS’s 100-year journey and its contributions to nation-building. The event was attended by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Delhi Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta, IGNCA President Ram Bahadur Rai, RSS Kshetra Sanghchalak Pawan Jindal, the co-authors, and other dignitaries.