Jammu, June 22: India and Pakistan should not stand on false prestige and must give up arrogance to help resolve the Kashmir issue, Jagadgruru Sankracharya Ashokanand Devatirtha said today. "The leaders of both countries need to understand the ground realities and give up their respective arrogance to resolve the issue so that common people in Jammu and Kashmir do not suffer any more," he told reporters here.
The Sankracharya, who performed a week-long “nachhatresy yagna” for world peace at the border town of Rajouri, said unless the two neighbourers came to terms to resolve the outstanding issues, including Kashmir, people will continue to suffer in India and Pakistan. Favouring talks by Central government with Kashmiri militants, he asked, "If government could hold talks with the Naga leaders outside the country, what is the harm in talking to separatist leaders in Kashmir."
Attributing the growth of secessionism and militancy to injustices to common people, the religious leader said, “Where governments fail to provide justice to its citizens separatism and militancy is bound to spread there,” and referred to the turmoil in Sri Lanka and Palestine. Blaming the Central and state governments for miseries of common people of Jammu and Kashmir, he said the authorities must create conditions to end the killings of its own people, whether they are innocent citizens, securitymen or militants.
Criticising politicians for exploiting godmen and saints for political purposes, Sankracharya said, "Our role basically is to give spiritual guidance to people. Yet, the leaders of many political parties are exploiting the religious preachers or saints during elections. Bureau Report