Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat is scheduled to arrive in Imphal on 18 November 2026 for a three-day organisational visit to Manipur, during which he will review the Sangh's ongoing activities and social initiatives in the conflict-affected state. The visit, confirmed by the RSS, will run from 18 to 20 November.

Purpose and Agenda of the Visit

According to the RSS, Bhagwat's visit will focus on assessing the progress of various organisational programmes, including activities being conducted as part of the Sangh's centenary-year celebrations — marking 100 years since the RSS was founded. He is also expected to review work linked to the RSS's 'Panch Parivartan' programme, which envisions social transformation across five key areas, and hold discussions on future activities under the initiative.

During his stay, Bhagwat will interact with RSS functionaries and volunteers — known as karyakartas — and encourage them to strengthen and expand the organisation's service activities across different parts of Manipur.

Significance Against Backdrop of Ethnic Violence

This will be Bhagwat's second visit to Manipur since ethnic violence between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities erupted on 3 May 2023. His previous visit to the state was in November 2025, when he held a series of closed-door interactions with karyakartas and members of the organisation from 20 to 22 November 2025. During that visit, he also met entrepreneurs, representatives of tribal communities, civil society organisations from both the Manipur valley and hill regions, prominent citizens, and leaders of youth organisations.

The upcoming interactions are expected to carry added significance given the prolonged nature of the conflict and its continuing impact on the state, with particular emphasis on the role of organisational workers in carrying forward social and service-oriented work. Bhagwat had also visited Manipur in 2022, prior to the onset of ethnic hostilities.

RSS Centenary Year Context

The three-day visit falls within the broader frame of the RSS marking its centenary year, with a series of organisational programmes, outreach activities, and social initiatives being conducted across the country. Bhagwat's Manipur visit is seen as part of this nationwide push to review field-level activities and chart the course for future programmes. Notably, Manipur has remained one of the more sensitive theatres for such outreach, given the deep social fractures that the ethnic violence has exposed.

What to Watch

Observers will be watching whether Bhagwat uses the visit to signal any broader RSS position on the ongoing humanitarian and political situation in Manipur, or whether the visit remains strictly organisational in character. His interactions with community representatives — as was the pattern in his 2025 visit — could carry significance for efforts toward dialogue and reconciliation in the state.