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The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) has confirmed to The Quint that security personnel at an ISKCON complex in Juhu in Mumbai were spraying gaumutra (cow urine) on visitors’ hands as a “precaution for coronavirus”.
Visitors allege this was done without their permission. ISKCON has not denied the allegation – a representative from the organisation’s Communications team told The Quint that they should perhaps have informed visitors it was gaumutra before spraying it on their hands.
ISKCON says gaumutra was used only because they were running short of alcohol-based hand sanitizers and that it was applied on visitors only on Sunday, 15 March.
On Sunday, Raju Nair visited the ISKCON-run Govinda Restaurant in Juhu with a friend. Nair, a Kerala Congress functionary and convenor of the Congress’ Digital Media Cell in the southern state, took to Twitter to describe what happened while he was entering the ISKCON premises.
Speaking to The Quint, Nair said that he had not taken up the matter further with the restaurant authorities because his friend was slightly worried. But he has now sent a complaint on the matter to the Mumbai Police.
Nair wasn’t the only one to raise concerns about gaumutra being sprayed without permission.
Parijata, an ISKCON Communications spokesperson, told The Quint, “We wouldn’t normally have used it (gaumutra). It was only because we didn’t have enough alcohol-based sanitizers. We respect it when someone says they don’t want to put gaumutra because it goes against their beliefs.”
However, Parijata maintained that cow urine has medicinal properties and can be used as a disinfectant: “And the purpose was to have a disinfectant there”.
She later sent a message to back her claims, “Cow urine has been granted US Patents no. 6,896,907 & 6,410,059 for its medicinal properties, particularly as a bio enhancer, antifungal, antibacterial and anti cancer agent.”
Read Quint FIT’s article on the details on those patents here.
Quint FIT spoke with Dr Sumit Ray, a Senior Consultant, Critical Care Medicine, who said that there are no scientific studies to support claims that the remedy to the virus may be ‘gaumutra’.
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