Vote decisively, says Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

Posted on: Sunday, February 2, 2014 | Posted by: Art of Living Universe

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, founder of The Art of Living has called upon voters to ensure that there was no fractured mandate in the Lok Sabha elections.

Coalition was the root cause of corruption because the party that led the government was in no position to act strongly, he told reporters here on Thursday after addressing students on ‘Youth Leadership.’

“Response to corruption from the youth is very good. It is the elders who should stand up to corruption by voting for a strong and stable government,” he said.

“The political situation in the country is very bad. While a small country like Sri Lanka can boast of an 11 per cent growth rate, India stands at 4 per cent. The cost of food grains has come down all over the world, while it has gone up in India. Our relations with our neighbours are very bad. There is a need to foster friendly relationships. This can happen only if we have a strong government, free of corruption. Now the situation is that even a small country such as the Maldives does not listen to us,” he said.

On the alleged human rights violations with regard to Tamils in Sri Lanka, he said they needed to lead a dignified life that they had been denied for long.

He said that Sri Lankan Tamils living in Tamil Nadu should be granted Indian citizenship. Terming the signature campaign he had taken up to ask the State Government to repatriate Sri Lankan Tamils as his “passionate project”, Sri Sri Ravishankar said this would bring relief to nearly 1.5 lakh Tamil refugees.

Though a change was necessary to end corruption, he said The Art of Living would not campaign for or against any party in the elections. “We have only a social role to play and will remain neutral. But we cannot keep quiet when crime and corruption are happening all around us.”

He, however, said that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was not the right alternative.

“AAP is a very young party. They should prove themselves in governance. Only then can they take part at the national level. This will take some time,” he added.

Interacting with students at Codissia Trade Fair Complex, he urged them to get actively involved in politics. Stating that those aged above 70 should not be in politics, he said they should only play the role of advisers for youngsters in politics.

Source: The Hindu