Sri Sri: IS can only be dealt with militarily
After receiving pictures of a beheaded man sent to him by the IS, spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar retracted his peace stance. He said that his efforts "for a peace dialogue with the ISIS had ended". He further said that the IS can only be tackled with military force and that there is no "scope of a peaceful resolution."
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is a spiritual leader who founded the Art of Living Foundation in 1981. Art of Living aims to reduce "individual stress, societal problems, and violence". In January 2016, he was bestowed the "Padma Vibhushan" by the Indian government. Recently AOL organised the World Culture Festival recognized as the "Olympics of culture", attended by almost 3.5 million people.
Sri Sri in an interview said that dialogue was the key to peace with the IS. He, however, conceded that dialogue alone would not accomplish anything if the radicals believed that "no-one else has a right to exist". He added that maybe institutional justice was the answer, and once they are in "prison, maybe then we will be able to change their minds".
Shri Shri Ravi Shankar said that he was ready to initiate a dialogue with insurgent and underground groups of Manipur to bring peace and prosperity in the state.
ISIS has apparently snubbed Sri Sri's attempt to open a dialogue with the radical group by sending him a picture of a beheaded man. In March 2016, British online newspaper Independent had reported that the Art of Living founder had reached out to the brutal terrorist group. Sri Sri had tried to help stop the rampage and deaths ISIS propagated.
