RSS chief says Gen Z grievances are real, backs protest as democratic dialogue
Chief Mohan Bhagwat on Thursday gave an unusually sympathetic reading of youth anger, saying the grievances of Gen Z protesters were genuine and should
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on Thursday gave an unusually sympathetic reading of youth anger, saying the grievances of Gen Z protesters were genuine and should be answered through dialogue, not dismissed as anti-national. He made the remarks in Mumbai, days after a large youth protest at Jantar Mantar.
Bhagwat told a gathering of Gen Z and Gen Alpha students that protest is part of democratic life and can help build consensus when other channels fail. The message was clear. Listen first.
‘They’re our own people’
Pushback against young protesters was a theme of his remarks. Bhagwat said he would not call Gen Z anti-national, arguing that they are “our own people” and the next generation. He said protests should be understood with a sense of belonging and relationship, not suspicion.
He also said the young want logical answers to the questions they raise. That, he argued, is why dialogue matters. If concerns are not heard, people may move from discussion to agitation. The goal, he said, should be consensus, not division.
Education, exams and trust
The comments came against the backdrop of student anger over NEET irregularities and paper leak allegations. Bhagwat said there is a lot that needs to be done in India’s education system and acknowledged that the concerns being raised are genuine.
He also said education is not a commercial business and should be structured so it is available for all. Society, he added, should contribute to improving the status of education. The line struck at a sensitive fault line in India: exam pressure, access, and trust in the system.
Bhagwat’s appearance at the India International Movement to Unite Nations’ 15th anniversary championship conference in Mumbai also doubled as a direct outreach to younger audiences, including Gen Alpha participants. He spoke to more than 2,000 students at the event, where the crowd was made up largely of teenagers and young adults.
One of his sharper remarks was simple: if Gen Z is protesting, it does not make them enemies of the nation. The test now is whether India’s institutions answer that anger with reform — or with another round of silence.
