Last updated:
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) Volunteer. (Representative image via PTI)
The public display of the DoPT's July 9 office memorandum follows the MP High Court directive which said central government departments and the home ministry must put it on the home page of their official websites
The Union Home Ministry published an order of the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) on its website revoking the ban on government employees from participating in the activities of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
The public display of the transport ministry office memorandum on July 9 was based on the directions of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, which said central government departments and the home ministry must put it on the home page of their official websites.
The DoPT order uploaded on the home ministry's website said: “…it has been decided to delete the reference to Rashtriya Swayam Sevak from the impugned OMs (Office Memoranda) dated November 30, 1966, July 25, 1970 and October 28, 1980 Contents of the Sangh”.
The Madhya Pradesh High Court said it took the Center nearly 50 years to realize that an “internationally reputed” organization like the RSS was wrongly included in the list of organizations barred to government employees.
The HC made the remarks on July 25 while disposing of a petition filed by retired central government employee Purushottam Gupta.
Gupta had filed a petition in the high court on September 19 last year challenging the Central Civil Service (Conduct) Rules and the Centre's office memorandums that prevented government employees from participating in the activities of the RSS.
“The court lamented that it took the central government nearly five years to realize its mistake; a bench of the high court, comprising Justices Sushruta Arvind Dharmadhikari and Gajendra Singh, said it admitted that an internationally renowned organization like the RSS had been wrongly included in the country's list of List of banned organizations from which it is typical to remove them.
“Thus, the desire of many central government employees to serve the country in various ways diminished during these five years as a result of this injunction, which was only lifted after it came to the attention of this Court during the present proceedings,” ” said the senior official. the court said.
The court said it had to believe that at the relevant point in time, perhaps there was never any material, study, investigation or report leading the decision to conclude that central government employees were involved in even “non-political/non-political activities” .
(This report has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from associated news agency – PTI)
