RSS Claims Abdul Kalam is a Hindu?

The Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh is teaching the children attending its shakha (unit) in Darbhanga district, Bihar, that the President of India A P J Abdul Kalam is a 'Hindu'.

According to the RSS, the Indian President is a Hindu because he treats his country 'like his mother', is a patriot from the core of his heart, reads the Bhagwad Gita, respects the statue of Nataraja (Shiva) and a vegetarian.

Most of the children attending the shakha are in the age group of 8 to 13 years.

The RSS leaders justify their teaching saying the term Hindu does not denote a caste or a religion. "It is a part of cultural nationalism in which any one who calls the country maa (mother) becomes a Hindu," a local RSS leader said.