Shankaracharya issues 33-day ultimatum to govt to ban cow slaughter, declare cow as 'Rashtra Mata'

Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, the Shankaracharya of the Jyotish Peeth in Uttarakhand, has given the central government a 33-day deadline to decide on banning cow slaughter and declaring the cow as "Rashtra Mata." He has warned that if no action is taken by March 17, he will take a "tough decision", PTI reported.

33-day yatra to culminate in Delhi

Addressing reporters at the Shankaracharya Camp in Sector 19, Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati stated that his movement to have the cow recognized as "Rashtra Mata" has been ongoing for the past one-and-a-half years.

"It is mentioned in the scriptures that 33 crore gods and goddesses reside in the body of a cow. We have been running a movement to declare the cow as 'Rashtra Mata' for the last one-and-a-half years," he said.


The seer announced that a 33-day-long yatra would begin the day after Maghi Purnima (Thursday) and conclude in Delhi on March 17.

Ultimatum to the government

Swami Avimukteshwaranand stated that the Centre has until March 17 to take a decision on the matter. "The central government has 33 days to take a decision. If it does not take any decision in these 33 days, then we will take a tough decision after 5 pm on March 17," he said.

He emphasized that the government should not categorize cows as animals but should recognize them as "Rashtra Mata."

"Our demand from the government is that cow should be removed from the category of animal and declared as 'Rashtra Mata' and cow slaughter should be considered a crime. The state government is going to include the cow in the school curriculum. But even there, if the cow is called an animal, then what is the benefit of it?" he questioned.

(Inputs from PTI)