The Walk of Hope 2015-16 was met by the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Kerala Shri Oommen Chandy at Nemom today morning at 7.30 am. The Chief Minister later participated in the Walk. The Walk of Hope 2015-16 has reached Thiruvananthapuram City by noon today.
Addressing the Walk of Hope group and the local audience, Hon’ble Chief Minister Shri Oommen Chandy said that the Walk of Hope stresses on the importance of humanity and convergence of love and friendship. With the leadership of Sri M, this great initiative will prepare the people for unity from the south to the north of this country. This is a huge responsibility and sacrifice undertaken by Sri M, wherein he is directly meeting the people along the way and earning their love and support for this activity encouraging love, brotherhood and mutual trust. With more enthusiasm from the people, the significance will be understood better and response will significantly increase.
Sri M thanked the Chief Minister for his attendance in spite of his busy schedule. He further said that the Walk is not about him but rather is a padayatra by Manav Ekta Mission for peace and harmony. With the welcome and enthusiasm the Walk has received so far, he was sure the Hope would be fulfilled. People, irrespective of caste, creed and religion were excited to see the initiative that talked about the oneness of humanity. He added that religion is one’s personal experience and it was important to live one’s life without harming anyone. He drew attention to the Rigveda where it says: “Ekam Sat, Viprah Bahudha Vadanti”(There is only one truth, only sages describe it in different ways) and the Bible where it says: “Lay treasures in your heart, for no thief can steal it. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.”
The Walk of Hope 2015-16 was flagged off on 12 January, 2015 from Kanyakumari by Dr.Karan Singh—Member of Parliament, former Governor and Union Minister in the presence of Sri M and dignitaries including Sri. Ravishankar Prasad, Union Minister, Ministry of Communications and Information Technology; Sri. Pon Radhakrishnan, Union Minister of State for Road Transport & Highways; Sri. Pusapati Ashok Gajapathi Raju, Union Minister of Civil Aviation; Sri PJ Kurien, Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha; Justice MN Venkatachaliah, former Chief Justice Of India; His Excellency Tai Situ Rinpoche and Sri. Rajagopal PV, Vice Chairman of the Gandhi Peace Foundation.
