CM Bhupendra Patel Greets RSS on Its Foundation Day
Synopsis
Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel marked RSS Foundation Day on Vijayadashami by praising the Sangh as the world's largest voluntary organisation, honouring Dr. Hedgewar's 1925 founding and calling on citizens to remain dedicated to a self-reliant, developed India.
Key Takeaways
Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel extended Foundation Day greetings to RSS volunteers on Vijayadashami, October 20, 2026 .
He described the RSS as the world's largest voluntary organisation , dedicated to national service, cultural preservation and social harmony.
Patel invoked the founding by Dr.
Keshav Baliram Hedgewar on Vijayadashami 1925 in Nagpur , using the metaphor of a banyan tree grown through volunteer sacrifice.
The message linked RSS volunteerism to the Viksit Bharat (Developed India) vision under the Rashtra Pratham ('Nation First') mantra.
Senior BJP leaders and chief ministers routinely issue similar public tributes on RSS Foundation Day each year.
A century of roots, and still growing. Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Tuesday, October 20, 2026 — Vijayadashami, the very date the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) was born — extended warm greetings to the organisation's volunteers on its Foundation Day, calling the RSS the world's largest voluntary organisation and saluting its unbroken commitment to national service, cultural preservation and social harmony.
Writing in Gujarati, Chief Minister Patel invoked the founding moment in vivid terms: 'Pujya Dr. Hedgewarjie vijyadashamina pavitra divse vavelu aa vatvriksha' — 'the banyan tree that revered Dr. Hedgewar planted on the sacred day of Vijayadashami' — has grown, he said, through the sacrifice, penance and hard work of crores of volunteers, and today carries Bharat Mata's glory to the world stage.
The Banyan That Hedgewar Planted in 1925
Dr. Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, a physician and independence activist, established the RSS on Vijayadashami, 1925, in Nagpur, with the stated aim of organising Hindu society around character-building and national service. The choice of Vijayadashami — the festival marking the triumph of good over evil — was deliberate, embedding the organisation's founding mythology into the Hindu calendar. That calendrical alignment makes every Vijayadashami a simultaneous religious festival and organisational anniversary, giving Foundation Day greetings from political leaders an added resonance.
Over the intervening decades the RSS expanded into one of the largest volunteer networks in the world, with shakhas — local daily training units — operating across thousands of towns and villages in India and abroad. Its volunteers have been prominently visible during natural disasters, relief operations and community welfare drives, the very record CM Patel highlighted in his post.
The 'Nation First' Mantra and Viksit Bharat
Patel's message carried a forward-looking call to action, urging citizens to remain dedicated — under the mantra 'Rashtra Pratham' ('Nation First') — to placing Bharat Mata at the pinnacle of glory and to building a self-reliant and developed India, an explicit echo of the ruling party's signature Viksit Bharat (Developed India) vision. The framing links RSS volunteerism directly to the broader national-development narrative that the BJP government has championed, presenting individual character-building and collective service as preconditions for India's rise.
Senior BJP leaders and chief ministers across states routinely mark RSS Foundation Day with public messages each year, underlining the organisational and ideological ties between the party and the Sangh. Patel's post follows that established pattern while personalising it with the Gujarati idiom of the banyan tree — a culturally resonant metaphor for deep-rooted, ever-expanding growth.
Point of View
Its ideological parent. By weaving in 'Viksit Bharat' and 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' — core government-policy watchwords — Patel subtly bridges Sangh volunteerism with state developmental goals, presenting them as a continuum rather than separate tracks. The banyan-tree metaphor also quietly signals institutional permanence and grassroots depth at a time when the RSS continues to expand its social-service footprint. For observers of Indian politics, such messaging serves a dual purpose: it energises the volunteer base while signalling to the broader electorate that governance and cultural service are inseparable in the BJP's vision.
NationPress
20 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
When was the RSS founded and by whom?
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh was founded on Vijayadashami, 1925 , in Nagpur by Dr. Keshav Baliram Hedgewar , a physician and independence activist who sought to organise Hindu society around character-building and national service.
Why is RSS Foundation Day celebrated on Vijayadashami?
Dr. Hedgewar deliberately chose Vijayadashami — the festival marking the victory of good over evil — to establish the RSS in 1925 , embedding the founding moment within the Hindu calendar and giving the annual anniversary a dual significance.
What did Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel say about the RSS on Foundation Day 2026?
CM Patel called the RSS the world's largest voluntary organisation, praised crores of volunteers for carrying Bharat Mata's glory to the world stage, and urged citizens to remain dedicated to building a self-reliant and developed India under the 'Nation First' mantra.
What is 'Viksit Bharat' and how does it relate to the RSS?
'Viksit Bharat' (Developed India) is the BJP government's vision for India's economic and social transformation. CM Patel's Foundation Day message linked RSS volunteer service directly to this goal, framing grassroots character-building as essential to achieving a self-reliant nation.
Do BJP leaders regularly post messages on RSS Foundation Day?
Yes — senior BJP leaders and state chief ministers routinely issue public greetings on RSS Foundation Day each year, underscoring the deep organisational and ideological ties between the party and the Sangh.
