The RSS on Tuesday condemned the violence during the farmers’ tractor parade in Delhi and said the unfortunate act at the Red Fort was an insult to those who sacrificed their lives for India’s freedom. Deviating from the designated route for the proposed tractor parade, a section of protesting farmers entered the Red Fort and hoisted flags from some domes of the iconic monument in the national capital.

The ruling BJP’s ideological mentor Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) appealed to all countrymen to rise above political and ideological differences and strive for peace as a priority.

The violence and disturbances unleashed in Delhi today, on the sacred Republic Day, are extremely painful and deplorable, RSS general secretary Suresh Bhaiyyaji said in a statement. Joshi described the hoisting of a flag other than the national flag at the Red Fort, as an unfortunate act, and said that it is an insult to martyrs who sacrificed their lives for freedom and national integrity.