RSS sacks Goa chief who led black flag march against Amit Shah

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh on Wednesday sacked its Goa chief Subhash Velingkar who had taken a public stance against the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in the state with members of an outfit run by him even showing black flags to party chief Amit Shah recently.

"He (Velingkar) has been relieved from his responsibilities. He wanted to get into some political activity. Being a Sangh leader, he can't do that," the RSS' All India Prachar Pramukh Manmohan Vaidya told PTI.

Vaidya said the decision on new organisational head for the coastal state, where elections are due next year, is yet to be taken.

Sources said that Velingkar was planning to float a new political outfit to fight the ruling BJP in the state which has not gone down well with the RSS, which is the ideological mentor of ruling BJP.

He also courted controversy earlier this week by reportedly saying that the BJP may not win the election in Goa next year since it has "betrayed" people's trust by going back on its promise of making regional languages as a medium of instruction in schools.

Velingkar is leading Bharatiya Bhasha Suraksha Manch, a front which has been demonstrating across the state against the decision of the BJP-led government in the state to give grants to English medium Schools.

As a part of the demonstration, the BBSM had showed black flags to Shah at Bambolim during his visit here on August 20.

Shah had reportedly raised the issue with RSS top brass at a meeting last week in Bhopal which was attended by the RSS second-in-command Bhaiyaji Joshi and joint general secretary Krishna Gopal.

Once a staunch supporter of Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, Velingkar fell out with him recently for "taking a u-turn" on the language issue.

Reacting to the development, Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar said it is an internal matter of the Sangh and we (BJP) have nothing to it.

"I came to know about it through media," Parsekar added.