A look at RSS general secretary Dattatreya Hosabale's profile

Dattatreya Hosabale has been elected as the ‘Sarkaryavah’ or general secretary of the RSS. Here is a look at his achievements and accomplishments over the years.

Bengaluru (Karnataka): Dattatreya Hosabale (popularly known as Datta Ji in RSS) is from a small village Hosabale of Soraba Taluk in the Shivamogga district of Karnataka. He was born in 1954, in Shimoga district. During the period of Indian Emergency from 1975 to 1977, he was arrested under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) and imprisoned for 16 months. He is a post-graduate in English literature. He joined RSS in 1968 and then ABVP in 1972. He became Sah-Baudhik Pramukh (second in command of the intellectual wing of RSS) in 2004. From 2009 He served as RSS Saha Sarkaryavah. From today Dattatreya Hosabale will serve as its ‘Sarkaryavah’.

Hailing from a family of RSS activists, he joined RSS in 1968 and then the student organization ABVP in 1972. He became a full-time worker of ABVP in 1978. He was General Secretary of ABVP and then stayed as National Organising Secretary till 2003 with his HQ being Mumbai. He completed school education at his birthplace Hosabale and college education in Bengaluru where he joined the famous National College. he studied literature and obtained his master's in English Literature from Bengaluru University.

Hosabale was active in academics and literary activities in school days. He played an active role in setting up the Youth Development Centre in Guwahati, Assam, World Organization of Student and Youth (WOSY). He is fluent in Kannada, Hindi, English, Tamil, and Sanskrit. He has voiced his opinion on Indian Secularism being anti-Hindu. Widely travelled, Hosabale was also the mentor of organizational activities of Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh in the USA and UK. Hosabale will be Sarkaryavah of RSS for the term of three years. The election to the post of Sarkaryavah takes place once in three years.