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Mohan Bhagwat Says LGBTQ+ People Belong in Indian Society but Stops Short on Legal Recognition

The RSS chief framed inclusion as cultural and moral accommodation while declining to endorse same‑sex marriage or other formal legal changes.

Overview

  • Mohan Bhagwat said on Sunday that LGBTQ+ people "exist" in India and deserve dignity, social space and protection from ostracism.
  • He told the Hyderabad event that some sexual and gender tendencies are innate and others develop later because of mindset or circumstance.
  • Bhagwat invoked Hindu texts and cultural practices, citing figures such as Shikhandi and the presence of community shrines to argue for historical accommodation.
  • He described marriage as a discipline that instils dharma and criticised live‑in relationships as a Western imitation that weakens responsibility.
  • The remarks reinforce the RSS's long‑standing stance of social acceptance without pressing legal change, so they shape public debate but do not alter laws or government policy.