‘Today`s politicians think Gandhism will not work’

Bangalore: Ruing the general feeling among politicians that Gandhism would not work in the present day world, Mahatma Gandhi`s granddaughter Sumitra Gandhi Kulkarni on Saturday said Gandhian principles are the only answer to bring about peace. Recalling her conversation with a former Congress President who she did not name, Kulkarni said "he told me Gandhism will not work in today`s world. It does not hold any meaning today. It is unfortunate this is the general feeling among politicians today," she said. However one must keep in mind that if some peace and harmony was to be brought in today`s complicated world, it is only by following Gandhian principles of truth and non violence, she said, addressing a gathering during the release of a book on her. "When we talk about non-violence, it is not just abstaining from physical violence but from violence in the mind, violent thinking and abstaining from emotions like jealousy, avarice and corruption". Overwhelmed by the love showered on her by the people of Kerala, where she had made her home for the past 18 years, the octogenarian said while she was connected to the Mahatma physically, "you all are his grandchildren... You remember him to this day over 60 years after Independence and are connected to him spiritually". She said to some extent she had imbibed the values of her grandparents, being with them till the age of 18 in Sabarmati Ashram. PTI