Congress party on Sunday pledged to revoke the order allowing government employees to take part in activities of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

In its manifesto released on Saturday, the Opposition party said it will ban holding of RSS shakhas in government premises and cancel the order that allowed officers and employees to participate in shakhas.

“RSS is a political organisation. If the Congress party in MP has said it will put an end to this practice, I see nothing wrong with that. Governments servants, as long as they are working with the government, shouldn’t openly associate with a political party,” senior Congress leader P Chidambaram said.

Hitting out at the party over the issue, BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said, “Looks like the Congress these days has only one motto: "We will neither allow the construction of temples nor the functioning of RSS".

The ban was first imposed by the Congress party in 1981 and revived in 2000, when Digvijaya Singh was the chief minister. The order warned employees of disciplinary action under M P Civil Service (classification, control and appeal) Rules of 1966 if they were found attending RSS shakhas or the organization’s other activities.

In September 2006, CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan lifted the ban saying the RSS is a socio-cultural organization and not a political entity.