The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) has sent a Rs 100 crore defamation notice to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Maneka Gandhi for her remark against the religious organisation.  The notice came two days after Gandhi said ISKCON is the “biggest cheat” in the country due to its purported sale of cows from its gaushalas (cowsheds) to butchers.

Calling the allegations ‘unfounded’, ISKCON in a statement said the organisation’s worldwide community was “deeply pained” by the BJP leader’s “defamatory, slanderous, and malicious accusations”.

“Today we have sent a Rs 100 crore defamation notice to Maneka Gandhi for levelling completely unfounded allegations against ISKCON. The worldwide community of ISKCON devotees, supporters, and well-wishers are deeply pained by these defamatory, slanderous, and malicious accusations. We will not leave any stone unturned in our pursuit of justice against the fallacious propaganda against ISKCON,” Radharamn Das, Vice-President of ISKCON Kolkata said.

The ISKCON, which is recognized as the most influential Krishna sect globally, refuted these accusations and said they are “unsubstantiated and false.”

Gandhi, a former union minister, and an animal rights activist, has been vocal on social media over issues of animal welfare.

In a recent viral video, she talked about her visit to ISKCON’s Anantpur Gaushala in Andhra Pradesh and recollects that she couldn’t come across any cow that wasn’t either giving milk or had calves.

“The biggest cheat in the country is ISKCON. They establish Gaushalas for which they get unlimited benefits from the government to run the gaushalas,” Gandhi was heard saying in a video.

“There was no dry cow in the entire dairy. Not a single calf was there. This means all of them were sold,” she added.