Squarely blaming the politicians for the controversy over conversions in the country, he said while the religious leaders preached the need for sacrifices, the politicians were dividing the nation on the lines of castes and religions for the sake of votes.

Talking to mediapersons after inaugurating the Kanchi Kamakoti computer centre in the City, the Kanchi seer said religious faith was a personal affair. However, he hastened to add that he would not agree with the view that people converted to other religions for spiritual benefits.

``In almost all cases it is the material benefits that is the reason for conversion. For God is the same in all religions,'' he remarked.

If religious and social leaders get together, the issue of conversions could be resolved,he asserted. To another query, the Seer said that the hallmark of Hinduism was its tolerance and it had been taken advantage over the years. ``When other religious institutions render any service, for them the first priority is the people belonging to their faith. But the Hindu organisations serve everyone, irrespective of their religious faiths,'' he said, replying to another query on the services of the Christian missionaries in the health and educational sectors.

Asked if the malaise of casteism in Hindu religion had not contributed to large-scale conversions to other religious faiths, the pontiff merely said that there were internal divisions in all religions. He went on to allege that caste clashes in southern districts of Tamil Nadu were engineered by political parties. ``Politicians are funding these clashes,'' he charged.

Asked about the political affiliations of religions leaders, he quipped: ``Politicians can come to spiritual leaders. But spiritual leaders should not go to the politicians''. Onways in which the Kanchi Mutt would bring about communal amity in southern districts of Tamil Nadu, he said ``we are doing our work silently without any publicity''.