Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat arrived in London on Thursday for the final leg of his three-nation tour. His UK visit follows stops in the US and Canada as part of the RSS’s global outreach programme marking its centenary. Bhagwat is expected to address a large gathering of the Indian diaspora in Britain over the weekend.
UK security minister Dan Jarvis responded to the written parliamentary query on Thursday and said the home office could not comment on individual cases but remained committed to addressing security concerns. The US Commission on International Religious Freedom ( USCIRF) had asked the US government to consider sanctions against RSS members and deny high-level meetings or diplomatic courtesies to Bhagwat during his US visit. Several groups issued a joint statement in support of his visit.
This comes after Bhagwat faced backlash in the United States ahead of his August 29 event at Madison Square Garden in New York. Over 100 British Hindu and community organisations welcomed Bhagwat’s arrival.
Conservative British MP Bob Blackman said he was pleased to hear the RSS chief’s views on the organisation’s future. “Pleased to listen to the thoughts & ideas for the future of @RSSorg by RSS Chief Dr Mohan Bhagwat this evening,” Blackman said in a post on X. Tlaib said Bhagwat and his “Hindu nationalist ideology” were “not welcome” in American communities, while McGovern said the RSS chief should face “accountability” rather than be given a platform. Last week, British Indian minister Nadia Whittome asked the UK Home Office whether it fully assessed Bhagwat’s visit under the government’s “commitment to block hate preachers and extremists from entering the UK”, PTI reported. He said the government was focused on the “full range of threats” and on “tackling anyone who spreads views that promote violence and hatred against individuals and communities”. Speaking at a press conference ahead of the event, Mamdani said he opposed the rally but said that the city government likely did not have jurisdiction to cancel a private event.
