Poverty does not breed naxalism, says Ravishankar

Bangalore, Apr 2 (UNI) Misguided youth and mostly unemployed post graduates and graduates are the root cause for spread of naxalism in the country and it's a misnomer to blame poverty in rural and tribal areas for the menace, eminent spiritual leader and Art of Living Foundation head Sri Ravishankar said today.

Talking to UNI, he said ''People with spoilt brains think wrongly and take to guns as they want easy money without any hardwork. They have no values in life. ''About 50 per cent of post graduates and 37 per cent of graduates were unemployed in the country and ''these are the people who are turning to naxalism.'' ''It is wrong to say that it is the poor who turn to naxalism to fight the society. How can the poor who cannot fend for themselves find money for arms and ammunitions.'' Foundation volunteers had spread to the troubled valley of Jammu and Kashmir, besides other naxal-infested areas of North India to persuade terrorists and naxalites to give up arms and join the mainstream. Some of the Kashmiri militants had even attended courses conducted by the Foundation at the Ashram here.

Commenting on the degradation of politics, the Spiritual leader said ''The quality of politics has gone very low. Fifty years ago, to be in politics was considered a prestige, today it is a matter of shame.... most of the educated people think politics is a dirty place to be in.'' He said lack of spiritual bent among politicians was the main reason for the degradation. There was need for commitment, dedication and selfless service.

On the rise of terrorism in the country, Sri Ravishankar blamed the Government for not doing much to curb the menace. Some of the advisors in the government did not respond quickly to reports received from intelligence agencies on terrorist activities. ''They don't take people into confidence,'' he said, adding ''The government can do much more to curb terrorism.'' MORE UNI VK RG SHR VC1045