Shillong, April 23: The RSS rally in the city on Sunday passed off peacefully except an instance where the volunteers were not allowed to proceed towards lower Mawprem.
Homnath Gautam, the RSS city secretary, said some locals prevented the volunteers.
“Though the Seng Khasi believers explained to them, they did not allow us to proceed. We had even paid tribute to the three state freedom fighters and their photos were displayed on a vehicle during the procession”, Gautam said.
He said since the permission for the rally was granted only on Friday evening, the functionaries could not get more people.
However, braving the rain, more than 500 Swayamsevaks from Khasi-Jaintia Hills took part in the rally starting from Khyndailad and ending at Cantonment play ground where Pawnam Sisha Khongsni, RSS East Khasi Hills district secretary, addressed the gathering and allayed fears of converting people to Hinduism.
The theme of the march was national integration and mutual respect for diverse cultures and traditions of the nation . Khongsngi called upon the youth of the state to come forward to contribute to the development of the state and India. He also highlighted the contribution of RSS in the development of the state in the last fifty years ,especially in the remote and interior areas.
He wanted the people to see beyond the ‘false narrative set by some sections of the media and so called intelligentsia to suit their vested interests and find out for themselves the real work and contributions of the RSS’.
He urged the swayamsevaks to work for the cause of society as the RSS is set to complete 100 years of its foundation in 2025.
