‘Declare cow rashtra mata’: Swami Avimukteshwaranand calls 81-day cow protection yatra from UP CM Yogi’s turf

During the 81-day campaign, he and his supporters would travel to villages across the state to raise awareness about cow protection and the real situation concerning bovine, the seer said.

Avimukteshwaranand asked his followers to visit more than 1 lakh villages in the state Ahead of the yatra, saying it was necessary to explain to people the “truth about cow protection”. “There are many people who still feel some leaders are their own. It is necessary to go to the people and explain why this dharma yudha is necessary,” he said.

“The initiative is rooted in the Vedic concept of ‘Gavishthi’, a righteous struggle to restore the dignity of bovine. Just as following the concept of dharma strengthens society, tolerating injustice strengthens adharma. Thus opposing injustice is also one’s duty,” he said.

“Our work is not to run a political party. But if a king moves in the wrong direction, saints must have the courage to catch him by the ear and put him back on the right path,” he said.

He also hit out at “government-aligned saints”, saying religious leaders should stand with the people rather than those in power. “We do not want ‘sarkari sants’. Their influence lasts only as long as the government lasts. We need saints whose influence remains among people,” he added.

During the event, Avimukteshwaranand also announced the formation of a “Shankaracharya Chaturangini”, which he described as a “new organised force of monks and followers that would function parallel to existing religious akharas”.

Referring to remarks by the Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad chief indicating support for the chief minister, Avimukteshwaranand said letters would be sent to various akharas seeking clarity on their stance.

“If akharas choose a different path, we will have to organise our own force,” he said, adding that members joining the new formation would undergo police verification and remain under surveillance.

The religious leader also asserted that Shankaracharyas occupy the highest authority in the Sanatan tradition, comparing them to a “supreme court”, while akharas and saints function at other levels of the religious hierarchy. After the conclusion of the yatra on July 23, a large gathering will be held in Lucknow the next day to mark the culmination of the campaign, he said.

Opposition party leaders, including Uttar Pradesh Congress president Ajay Rai and Samajwadi Party MLA Ravi Das Malhotra, and several religious leaders attended the event on Wednesday.