Swami Vivekananda said that Indian women do not shake hands as they are respected like a queen.

There are no credible sources to verify Swami Vivekananda's explanation on why Indian women don't shake hands.

There are no credible sources to verify Swami Vivekananda's explanation on why Indian women don't shake hands. Swami Vivekananda faced bigotry in America on several issues of Indian culture — one was the Indian woman. Therefore, he sought to correct Western misconceptions. In a lecture delivered at Cambridge on Dec. 17, 1894, Swami spoke about women in India, their freedom, and their greatness.

Several websites have published that once a British man had asked Swami Vivekananda why Indian women do not shake hands. Responding to that man, Swami politely asked whether it’s okay to shake hands with the Queen of Great Britain. The man replied, no. So, Swami Vivekananda said that ‘we treat all women in India as queens’.

However, there is no official source to confirm the same. Therefore, the claim is unverifiable.