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Ban on Indian govt officials joining Hindu group lifted, triggering debate on neutrality
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After the June election results, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat (right) said a true sevak (a person whose job is to serve people) must not be “arrogant”.
PHOTO: AFP
NEW DELHI – The lifting of a ban on government officials joining the ideological parent of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has sparked a debate on the potential impact of the move on the neutrality of the country’s bureaucracy.
On July 30, the Ministry of Home Affairs uploaded on its website an order – passed on July 9 – removing the four-decade-old ban on officials joining the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), an outfit working for Hindu unity in the Hindu-majority country.


