Washington: Observing that the national opposition in the country is weak, spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar said he believes that for a healthy democracy, it is essential that India has a stronger opposition, one that is constructive as well.
"India needs a stronger and constructive opposition. The (current) opposition is very weak. Lack of leadership in the opposition can make any democracy appear as not a democracy," Art of Living Foundation founder Ravi Shankar told news agency in an interview. "Democracies do need a stronger opposition – conservative and creative, that is missing in India. Of course, West Bengal has shown that with free-and-fair election, no party can meddle with the institutions of India, and the judiciary is quite strong. But the lack of a central opposition, a strong leader will make the country look like it is autocratic, but it is not. We are such a huge democracy. People have power," Ravi Shankar said.
The Indian spiritual leader is currently on a two-month tour of the United States, travelling to various cities and spreading the message of peace and the need of it in a post-Covid world.
Asserting that peace and non-violence has always been in India's DNA, Ravi Shankar said there is a misconception in the west about India's stand on the war in Ukraine, wherein people think that New Delhi is supporting an aggressor, which is not the case in reality.
"First of all, we must make clear to the world that we stand for peace. We are not for war. It is a misconception that we are siding with the war. Our prime minister has said this several times that we stand for peace," he said.