We don’t have the time to run BJP: Mohan Bhagwat

He,however,clarified that if BJP seeks help on any constructive issue,the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is always ready to help.

On several queries on the BJP leadership issue,Bhagwat said it is BJP’s internal matter and hoped the political party will resolve it.

“To decide on who will be the next president of BJP is their prerogative,” he said.

When asked whether the RSS was keen to have the next BJP chief from outside Delhi,he said,”this is not true,but in fact this had been communicated to us by them (the BJP)..we dont know who their next head will be”.

On the charges that the organisation indulged in “moral policing”,Bhagwat said there was no truth in this. “After India became Independent,we have always submitted ourselves to the law of the land though we have our own ideology and we follow that”.

When asked to make a choice between BJP and the Congress,he said,”we are not to make this judgment. This choice is made by the people whenever the elections are held.”

Asked about the “border disputes” between India and China,the RSS chief said,”We have to be alert. China keeps staking its claim on some territories which are our part. But we have to adopt a balanced approach. We should keep our military,intelligence and diplomacy fronts on alert and at the same time deal with the situation in a peaceful manner”.

On “divisive agenda” by MNS in Maharashtra,Bhagwat said,”this country belongs to all of us. Anyone is free to live and earn their livelihood anywhere. Sometimes there are some local issues but these cannot be at the cost of our national integration.”

To a query on the recent violence in Gujarat allegedly involving the followers of religious leader Asaram Bapu,he said,”we have talked to the authorities and asked them to ensure that no innocent faces any trouble”.

He termed the menace of caste system as a “chronic evil” and favoured continuation of the reservation system till “the discrimination which the people have faced over a long period of time ends”.

“There should be a time-bound programme and a non-political committee should be set up to decide how long this (the reservation) is needed,” he said,charging political parties with wanting to keep the reservation system continue indefinitely for “their own interests”.