KERALA SOFTENS SABARIMALA STANCE ON DAY OF HIGH DRAMA
NILAKKAL (SABARIMALA BASE CAMP) : Kerala’s Sabarimala temple reopened on Friday — a day of high drama at the Kochi airport where activist Trupti Desai was prevented by protesters from leaving the building — even as the administrators of the hilltop shine said they would approach the Supreme Court for more time to allow women of all ages to enter the temple.
The Travancore Devaswom Board’s (TDB) decision to approach the top court is being seen as a climbdown by chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, whose government has repeatedly said it was committed to implementing the court’s September verdict despite protests by traditionalists and political opponents.
TDB is an autonomous body; its president and two board members are appointed by the state government.
A Padmakumar, the incumbent president, is a former legislator of the ruling Communist Party of India (Marxist), or CPI(M).
The board, which is in charge of the administration of the temple, had refrained from approaching the court so far, reportedly on the chief minister’s insistence.
About 175km from Sabarimala, activist Trupti Desai, who arrived at Kochi airport on her way to the temple, was halted by hundreds of protesters who blocked all the exits.
Desai was holed up at the airport for about 14 hours after she landed in the tourist hot spot around 5am.
In the evening, she said she would return — for now — only to be back before the doors of the shrine are closed in mid-January. The ruckus affected the operation of the airport.
“It is sad that I couldn’t make a darshan. People who prevented me are not devotees, they are goons. They showered verbal abuses on me. I will come back again..,” she said.
Protesters have not allowed a single woman between 10 and 50 years of age to enter the 800-yearold temple despite the Supreme Court’s September 28 verdict permitting it. Traditionalists say women of menstruating age cannot enter the temple because the presiding deity, Lord Ayyappa, is considered celibate.
CM Vijayan sought cooperation from the people. “The objective of the Government is to uphold the esteem of Sabarimala temple, which is a major pilgrim centre in the country and is a place of worship of all people... As a place that attracts a large number (of) pilgrims from outside, any occurrence of untoward incidents will mar the reputation of the temple,” he said in a Facebook post.
As rain lashed the temple nestled in the Western Ghats, tantri (supreme priest) Rajeevaru Kandarau opened its doors at 5pm— for the third time after the court order that was hailed as a landmark verdict.
“We have decided to move the apex court with a plea to seek more time to implement the verdict. The petition will be moved either on Saturday or Monday. TDB is with devotees and committed to safeguarding customs of the temple,” Padmakumar said, in an indication that the government was softening its stand.
On November 13, a five-judge Supreme Court bench led by chief justice of India Ranjan Gogoi agreed to reconsider its September judgment, but refused to stay the operation of the verdict. The apex court fixed January 22 to take up the 49 review petitions calling for a reversal of the September 28 verdict and other applications in the matter.
Both the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has intensified its campaign on Sabarimala, and the Congress have criticised the Kerala government’s handling of the situation and supported the protesters.
Sabarimala and its base camps witnessed violent protests by traditionalists who clashed with police, intimidated journalists and stopped the entry of at least 15 women in the past one-and-a half months, when the temple opened its door twice — on October 17 for a five-day ritual and on November 5 for a one-day ‘pooja’.
“We can’t trust TDB because it is a mere puppet in the hands of chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan. We have to get an assurance that the government will not allow women till the Supreme Court takes up review pleas,” said BJP state president PS Sreedharan Pillai, who had been on a ‘rath yatra’ in support of the temple customs, hinting that his party will keep mounting pressure on the state government on the religiously sensitive issue.
Many pilgrims who trekked to the shrine on Friday complained about a lack of facilities, which, some of them said, could be hit due to the prolonged standoff between protesters and security personnel. Notwithstanding a heavy police presence, members of several fringe groups have already gathered to make sure no woman between 10 and 50 years can enter the shrine.
In a related development, the Kerala high court rejected on Friday the anticipatory bail plea of activist Rehana Fatima, who reached close to Sabaramila temple in October but was turned away by protesters. Police have registered against her a case for allegedly hurting religious sentiments.