Koli community demands mandatory registration, auditing of RSS

Published 10 July 2026 · politics

Actively raising their voices for institutional accountability, members of the Koli (Kabbaliga) community, under the banner of the Karnataka State Koli Kabbaliga S.T. Horata Samiti

Actively raising their voices for institutional accountability, members of the Koli (Kabbaliga) community, under the banner of the Karnataka State Koli Kabbaliga S.T. Horata Samiti, staged a demonstration in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office on Thursday (July 10, 2026). Led by their State president and Congress leader Lacchappa S. Jamadar, the protestors submitted a comprehensive memorandum addressed to the State government through the district administration, demanding mandatory registration and strict financial audit of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). The agitation was triggered by the ongoing political row surrounding Home Minister Priyank Kharge’s recent letter to RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, questioning the legal registration status of the century-old right-wing organisation.

Demonstrators strongly backed Mr. Kharge, asserting that his queries regarding legal compliance were entirely within the framework of the Constitution. The agitators firmly condemned the allegations and verbal attacks directed at the Home Minister by opposition leaders, calling on progressive thinkers to support the demand for structural transparency across all public organisations. “When various non-governmental organisations (NGOs), public trusts, and self-help groups across the country are legally mandated to register and subject themselves to strict financial accounting, the RSS cannot remain an exception to the law of the land,” Mr. Jamadar said, highlighting the necessity for financial transparency.

He also pointed toward recent media reports alleging the mismanagement of public donations collected for the Ayodhya Ram Mandir and urged both the Union and State governments to conduct an unbiased, transparent investigation into these collection mechanisms without granting special exemptions to any entity. The memorandum laid down a definitive five-point charter of demands aimed at safeguarding legislative transparency and personal security. Chief among their demands is the immediate registration of a criminal case against certain union ministers, BJP MPs, and MLAs who have allegedly issued death threats against Home Minister Priyank Kharge, alongside an immediate upgrade of his security cover.

The agitators also demanded that the RSS immediately register itself under appropriate statutory provisions, failing which its activities in the State should be treated as unauthorised, leading to a complete ban on its operations and the filing of anti-national cases against its office-bearers.