# RSS chief Bhagwat tells Gen Z dharma is above religion 2026-09-18T09:13:24+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 4 independent outlets RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat told about 1,700 young participants at the Yuva Dharm Sansad in Ujjain on Friday that he was heartened to see Gen Z discussing 'dharma' at a time when some consider it an old people's affair. He distinguished India's concept of dharma from the Western notion of religion, saying dharma liberates and leads to moksha while religion binds. He urged the audience to shed prejudices to understand dharma, and claimed that adharma, or unrighteousness, has led to deforestation and threatens human existence. Bhagwat said India has not discriminated among faiths and its understanding of secularism is different from the Western model, which emerged from conflicts between rulers and religious authorities. He linked dharma with environmental responsibility and urged young people to respect other forms of worship while remaining committed to their own traditions. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav will attend the concluding session on 19 September. The event's sixth edition follows similar gatherings in Kashi, Ayodhya and four other cities, with next year's edition set for Dwarka. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The coverage is uniformly straight wire reporting. Readers should see this as a factual record of the RSS chief's public remarks, not news with independent editorial judgement. Deccan Herald, Economic Times, The Federal and Greater Kashmir all lead with the same PTI-provided facts: Bhagwat's praise of Gen Z discussing dharma, his distinction between dharma and Western religion, and his environmental framing of adharma as deforestation. The only substantive addition is Greater Kashmir's extra detail on Bhagwat's recent foreign trips and his critique of wealth imbalance. The event's real news weight lies in the RSS's explicit courtship of Gen Z, with the concluding session on 19 September attended by Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and next year's edition in Dwarka. ## Coverage - thefederal.com (neutral report) Led with Bhagwat's remark distinguishing dharma from religion, neutral wire copy - economictimes.indiatimes.com (neutral report) Same PTI text, neutral wire report - deccanherald.com (neutral report) Same PTI text, neutral wire report - greaterkashmir.com (neutral report) Added Bhagwat's critique of Western secularism and wealth imbalance, neutral wire copy Tags: Mohan Bhagwat, Mohan Yadav, RSS, Ujjain, Yuva Dharm Sansad Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/rss-chief-bhagwat-tells-gen-z-to-shed-prejudices-to-understand-dharm/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/rss-chief-bhagwat-tells-gen-z-to-shed-prejudices-to-understand-dharm/#story-in-brief