RSS files over 60 route-march applications in Bengaluru for 25 October after Karnataka Home Minister insists on "permission"

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh has submitted more than 60 applications in Bengaluru for its Vijayadaśamī route marches on 25 October, and city police are granting permission to those that follow standard procedure, The Hindu reported. The applications became a talking point after Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge shared two RSS letters on social media that "informed" the police of proposed marches.

Kharge said the RSS must seek permission rather than merely inform the police, because rallies involving lakhs of participants need arrangements for logistics, food and traffic. Citing the RSS Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha annual report for 2025-26, he said over two lakh participants took part in more than 562 route marches in Karnataka without the police being informed.

Critics saw the remarks as another face-off between Kharge and the Sangh, recalling the initial denial of permission for a route march in his Chittapur constituency in November 2025, which was later allowed by court order with conditions. A senior police officer told The Hindu that most applications had been cleared.

"No extra or specific directions are being followed for RSS applications," the officer said. Applicants must name the organiser and at least five volunteers, and give the expected turnout, a route map, the purpose and the type of march.

In Hubballi on Friday, Union Minister Pralhad Joshi urged Kharge to focus on governance and law and order instead of targeting the RSS. Joshi said such marches had been held under several earlier Home Ministers, including Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara, and that questions about the RSS should be answered by the organisation itself.