Sri Sri Ravishankar escapes unhurt as gunman fires at convoy

Spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravishankar today escaped bid on his life when an unidentified gunman shot at his car when he was returning after delivering a discourse, an ashram official said.

"I am absolutely safe," the 54-year-old founder of the Art of Living said shortly after the incident.

One of his devotees sustained a minor injury on the thigh with the bullet brushing past, ashram spokesperson Charu said.

The incident took place around 6.15 PM when Ravishankar was returning to his 'Kutir' by car after addressing a gathering at the 'Satsang', she told PTI.

"We usually have a satsang from four PM every Sunday till around six where even people from neighbouring villages join us. Sri Sri had addressed those gathered at the Satsang and completed his discourse and was returning to his `kutir' by car when the incident occurred," she said.

Sri Sri Ravishankar, who has a wide following all over the country and abroad, where he has set up centres of his organisation, said he had gone ahead with his discourse even after the incident.

Karnataka Home Minister V S Acharya said central range IG Kamal Panth has been sent to the ashram to inquire about the incident. "There is no problem... everything is peaceful there," he said.

The spiritual guru told a TV channel that he had not received any threat earlier.

Sri Sri Ravishankar has popularised 'Sudarshan Kriya', a powerful breathing technique in India and overseas.

First Published: May 30, 2010 23:16 IST