ISKCON has sent a ₹100 crore defamation notice to BJP MP Maneka Gandhi for her recent controversial statement that ISKCON sells cows to butchers. ISKCON will legally pursue the case against the former Union minister till the end, ISKCON vice president Radharamn Das said. Maneka Gandhi’s comments were unfortunate and hurt the sentiments of ISKCON devotees across the world. “How could an MP who was a former minister lie about ISKCON without any evidence? She said she went to Anantpur gaushala, but people there can’t remember Maneka Gandhi visiting there. So sitting at home, she is making these baseless allegations,” the vice president said.
Here is Maneka Gandhi’s video
A video of animal rights activist Maneka Gandhi recently went viral in which the BJP MP called ISKCON (International Society for Krishna Consciousness) the biggest cheaters of the country. “They establish gaushalas and get benefits from the government to run these gaushalas. And they get huge land for that. I visited their Anantpur gaushala. Not a single dry cow was present. All were dairies. No calf was there either which means all cows were sold. So ISKCON is selling their cows to butchers. No one else does as much as they (ISKCON) do. And they do ‘hare ram hare krishna‘ on the roads. They also say their life is dependent on doodh, doodh, doodh, doodh. No one has sold as many cows to butchers as ISKCON did. If these people can do it, what about the others?” Maneka Gandhi said.
ISKCON issued a statement immediately after the video went viral and said her allegations were baseless.
“ISKCON has been at the forefront of cow and bull protection and care not just in India but globally. The cows and bulls are served for their life not sold to butchers as alleged. ISKCON has pioneered cow protection in many parts of the world where beef is a staple diet. Within India, ISKCON runs more than 60 gaushalas protecting hundreds of sacred cows and bulls and providing personalised care for their entire lifetime. Many of the cows presently served in ISCKON’s goshalas were brought to us after being found abandoned, injured, or rescued from being slaughtered,” ISKCON’s statement read.
“In recent times, ISKCON has begun training programs for the farmers and rural households on cow care techniques to help revive the culture of cow worship and care as was the case in previous generations. Several ISKCON Goshalas are recognised and lauded for their high cow-care standards by the Government of association of Goshalas. Smt. Gandhi is a well-known animal rights activist and well-wisher of ISKCON hence we are surprised by these statements,” ISKCON said.
Amogh Lila Das’s video on Maneka Gandhi’s accusation
ISKCON monk Amogh Lila Das issued a video serving the cows and calves and said generally visitors do not come to the section where the calves are kept. “They think ISKCON sends calves to the butchers. Madam, please come and see how they are being taken care of. Anyone can come anytime here. It’s not that we are showing this for the purpose of this video,” Amogh Lila Das said.
