West Bengal minister Dilip Ghosh has once again triggered a political storm with his controversial remarks on the “healing powers” of cows. Speaking at a morning gathering in Kolkata’s Kankurgachi on Tuesday, the BJP leader claimed that regularly petting indigenous cows could help reduce high blood pressure naturally.
The statement, made during an informal tea session with party workers and local residents, quickly reignited debate over Ghosh’s long history of unconventional remarks involving cows, cow products and traditional beliefs.
According to Ghosh, gently touching the hump or neck area of a native Indian cow can positively affect the human body. “If someone softly strokes the hump or upper back of a desi cow, their blood pressure can come down rapidly and naturally,” he said while interacting with supporters.
Dilip Ghosh Sparks Row Again With Claim That Petting Cows Can Reduce Blood Pressure
The newly appointed heavyweight minister, who now handles Panchayat, Animal Resources Development and Agricultural Marketing departments in the state government, also revealed that he would soon hold a high-level review meeting with dairy industry stakeholders and owners of goshalas across Bengal.
However, even before the official meeting takes place, Ghosh once again used a public platform to elaborate on what he described as the “divine and medicinal qualities” of cows.
This is not the first time the BJP leader has made headlines over such comments. Back in 2019, while serving as the BJP’s West Bengal president, Ghosh had claimed at a public rally that cow milk contains “gold.” He had argued that indigenous cows possess a special “golden vein” in their hump that absorbs sunlight and produces gold-like elements in milk, giving it a yellowish tint.
During the Covid-19 pandemic too, Ghosh had stirred controversy after advocating the consumption of cow urine to boost immunity. His remarks had then drawn criticism and mockery from opposition parties and sections of the scientific community.
Responding to critics at the time, Ghosh had lashed out by saying that “intellectuals feel uncomfortable whenever the good qualities of cows are discussed,” adding that “donkeys can never understand the real value of cows.”
On Tuesday, the minister also spoke about the supposed healing properties of cow dung. Referring to a personal anecdote, he claimed that one of his relatives had suffered severe swelling in a body part, which allegedly subsided after fresh cow dung was applied to the affected area instead of seeking medical treatment.
Interestingly, similar claims had earlier been made by controversial former BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur from Madhya Pradesh. She had once said that regularly massaging a cow from the back toward the neck could cure chronic blood pressure problems.
With Dilip Ghosh reviving his familiar “cow science” narrative soon after becoming a minister in the new government, political circles in Bengal have once again erupted in sharp reactions, criticism and satire.
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