Mohan Bhagwat Clarifies on 75-Age Remark, Says He Never Called for Retirement

RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat Denies Age Limit Rule, Clarifies on ‘75-Years’ Remark.

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat has clarified that there is no rule in the organisation requiring members above the age of 75 to step down from their roles. Speaking at a press conference marking 100 years of the RSS, Bhagwat said: “In the Sangh, we are all volunteers. We do the work assigned to us, regardless of age. I never said I would retire or that someone else should retire.”

He added that even if a volunteer is 80 years old, he would still be expected to run a shakha if asked. “One cannot use age as a reason to refuse work in the Sangh,” he underlined. The clarification comes weeks after Bhagwat, at a book release event in Nagpur in July, had suggested that leaders should step aside after turning 75. He had referred to late RSS ideologue Moropant Pingley’s view that crossing 75 should be seen as a signal to allow others to take over responsibilities.

The remarks had drawn wider attention as both Bhagwat and Prime Minister Narendra Modi turn 75 in September this year. Bhagwat, however, insisted on Thursday that his earlier comments had been misinterpreted and that there is no formal retirement age within the Sangh.