RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat sparked a debate on Sunday by calling for a “fertility rate of three” for the Indian society to ‘survive’. The comments have left politicians divided along partisan lines — with All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) supremo Asadudddin Owaisi wondering whether Bhagwat planned to pay people and introduce a scheme for the same.
“I want to ask Mohan Bhagwat, what will he give people for giving birth to more children? Will he give ₹1,500 into the bank accounts of those who give birth to more children? Will he introduce a scheme for this?” the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen supremo jibed.
Bhagwat dubbed the declining fertility rate a “serious concern” for India while addressing an event in Nagpur. The RSS chief warned that it “should be at least three” if the society did not wish to face extinction.
Several BJP leaders have since insisted that the remarks made by Bhagwat were in “national interest”. Opposition leaders, however, questioned the assertion with many attaching a “political agenda” to his comments.
“What he (Bhagwat) is saying is contradictory because BJP leaders are saying the population should be controlled. They should clear these contradictions and the government should come out with a policy on population,” said Congress Lok Sabha MP Tariq Anwar.
“I respect Mohan Bhagwat ji, but what experience does he have of bringing up a child? Everything is adulterated, food prices are high and when they (children) grow up, they don’t get employment. What do people need more children for?” wondered Congress Rajya Sabha MP Renuka Chowdhury.
“Such statements are made with a political agenda, and people have to pay (the price) for them. If we start manufacturing, people will get employment. But the government has failed in this,” Azad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) MP Chandra Shekhar told PTI.
(With inputs from agencies)