Don’t vote on caste basis

NEW DELHI (INDIA): Using caste as a vote bank is not good for a democratic system, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) joint general secretary Krishna Gopal today said stressing that people should vote on basis of a candidate’s abilities.nnLamenting that differences due to caste are deep in our country, the RSS pointsman for BJP said discrimination on basis of caste is a social evil which has to be urgently eliminated.nn”Some people have personal and political vested interests and they use caste as their vote bank which I believe is not good in a democratic set up. A person should be elected on basis of his qualification and talent and not mere caste,” Krishna Gopal said at a book lauch organised at world book fair here.nnSpeaking on Hindutva, the RSS leader said it is about continuity, new ideas and innovations.nn”Hindutva respects new views and ideas. Hinduism word in itself create boundaries as Marxism or any other theory does but Hindutva is not about stagnation. It gives one permission for debate as well as discussion,” he said.nnCiting the scripture of Rig Veda, he said in ancient India women saints have given vedic mantras and also men who belonged to so called lower castes.nn”Everything depended on capability of a person in those days. But this system has somewhere been lost,” Gopal said.nnHe said that there should be understanding among people from different classes as in a civilised society cooperation among people is a must.nn”There should not be any discrimination on basis of what work one does,” Gopal added.nnThe RSS office bearer said there is a divide between rich and poor but a struggle as propounded in Marxism is not the way out.nn”Indian society and ideology is not about struggle it’s about peace and harmony. Even few foreign countries in past 50-60 years have distanced themselves from Marxism,” he added.nnHe was speaking at the launch of the book ‘Samajik Samrasta or Hindutva’ by Balasaheb Devras.nnSource: Press Trust of India