Sabeer Bhatia is shocked by IIT Madras director’s 'anti-bacterial' cow urine claims: 'If educated...'

Hotmail co-founder Sabeer Bhatia questioned the implications of such statements from educated leaders for the credibility of elite institutions.

Sabeer Bhatia, co-founder of Hotmail, said on Monday that he was shocked after coming across a viral video featuring IIT Madras director V Kamakoti, claiming that cow urine possesses "anti-bacterial, anti-fungal" properties with digestive benefits.

"Shocked by IIT Madras Director’s viral video claiming cow urine is 'anti-bacterial, anti-fungal' with digestive benefits. If educated leaders spout this, how can we trust their decisions for elite institutions?" he wrote on X.

His post quickly ignited a fervent debate online. Congress leader Pearl Choudhary (@pearlpataudi) revealed a personal experience at a US international airport where immigration officers, after questioning her about religious prasad, surprisingly asked, "Are you carrying cow dung?" and "Cow urine?" The officer explained some Indian travelers attempt to carry it, despite it being disallowed, highlighting how "certain beliefs can travel far even when science and international norms say otherwise."

This is Director IIT Madras, no less. Wish someone gave him a packet of cow urine right then - what would he have done pic.twitter.com/NwG5ybBhVm

— Madhu Bharathi V (@madhubharathi) January 19, 2025

Other users echoed Bhatia's concerns. Anvar Ali Idrisi (@AnvarAli021) remarked that while such individuals are educated, their "brain has not developed as expected," remaining "engrossed in religious faith." Osho Vaani (@arorannu) warned of potential international repercussions, suggesting, "Howard and Cambridge will stop inviting professors from India for lectures, these dimwits don't understand the impact even." victor_kingsley (@victorkingsley_) sarcastically quipped, "At this rate, next semester’s syllabus will include 'Advanced Gaumutrology' with a lab session in a cowshed. IIT now stands for Indian Institute of Tonic?"

There, however, were others, including Zoho co-founder Sridhar Vembu, who defended Kamakoti.

"IIT Madras Director Prof Kamakoti is an accomplished researcher and educator," he wrote on X. "He gave citations of scientific papers on the beneficial properties of cow urine. Modern science is increasingly recognising the value of our traditional insights. Online mobs are simply channeling their own prejudices, not based on any scientific insight. Stay strong Prof Kamakoti. Don't give into the attack mobs."

Details of peer-reviewed journals

Kamakoti had made the claims at an event in Chennai on January 15. On January 20, he asserted that five scientific papers published in peer-reviewed journals validated cow urine's anti-infective properties, including antifungal, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory effects. He cited a US patent from May 24, 2005, issued to Khanuja et al on the "use of bioactive fraction from cow urine distillate," filed by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research. "The researchers have experimented and presented their findings. Nature is one of the top journals in the United States of America. The output in the research papers is the evidence,” Kamakoti stated, adding he was asked to speak on "science and cow."

The peer-reviewed journals cited by Kamakoti include Peptide profiling in cow urine reveals molecular signature of physiology-driven pathways and in-silico predicted bioactive properties by Rohit Kumar et al in Nature (2021), along with articles in Asian Journal of Pharmaceutical Research, International Journal of Recent Advances in Multidisciplinary Research, Journal of Drug Delivery and Therapeutics, and Journal of Intercultural Ethnopharmacology, The Hindu reported.