By Kavita Mistry 
New Delhi: Kamaltai R. Gavai, mother of Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai, has been invited by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) to attend an event in Amravati district of Maharashtra in early October, organised to mark Vijayadashami, or Dussehra, and the centenary of the organisation.
“In our Hindu society, the holy festival of Vijayadashami is a celebration of valour and the awakening of strength. On this sacred occasion, the work of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh will complete 100 years. With the objective of world peace and human welfare, the Sangh’s journey with the Hindu society continues…,” reads the invite, which says that Dr Kamaltai R. Gavai will be the chief guest at the function to be held on 5 October in Amravati.
Senior RSS leader J. Nandakumar will be the main speaker at the event, which is being organised by the RSS’ Amravati Mahanagar unit at Srimati Narsamma Mahavidyalaya Maidan in Amravati’s Kiran Nagar locality. According to the invite, Kamaltai is president of the Shri Dadasaheb Gawai Charitable Trust of Amravati.
Sources in the RSS said Kamaltai has received the invitation and agreed to attend the event.
Earlier this month, CJI B.R. Gavai’s oral remark to a petitioner to pray to Lord Vishnu for the repair of his Vishnu idol had triggered controversy, with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) as well as saints across the country saying that he had “mocked Hindu faith”.
Soon after, Gavai sought to put a lid on the controversy, explaining that his remark was “misportrayed on social media”. VHP president Alok Kumar, in a statement, criticised the CJI’s comments and said: “It is the duty of all of us to exercise restraint in our speech, especially inside the court. This responsibility lies with those fighting the case, with the lawyers, and equally, with the judges.”
Declining a petition by Rakesh Dalal, who sought a court order for the repair of the seven-foot idol, a bench led by CJI Gavai refused to entertain the plea, saying that the matter fell within the jurisdiction of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
On 16 September, the bench orally remarked that the petitioner should “go and pray” to Vishnu for relief. “Go and ask the deity itself to do something now. You say you are a staunch devotee of Lord Vishnu. So, go and pray now. It’s an archaeological site and ASI needs to give permission…,” the court reportedly said.
The RSS will launch its centenary year celebrations during this year’s Vijayadashami festival in Nagpur on 2 October, marking 100 years since the organisation was founded by Dr K.B. Hedgewar in 1925. Along with Nagpur, events will be held across the country to mark Vijayadashami and celebrate the RSS’ centenary year.
The organisation has said that starting from this Vijayadashami until the next, the RSS will observe a ‘Shatabdi Varsha’, emphasising its growth, with a series of programmes, including more than one lakh Hindu Sammelans and thousands of symposiums across the country.
Also Read: RSS, power politics, and the Deep State—transparency is the only antidote