Sabarimala row: In a first, 2 women below 50 enter temple after SC verdict

The two women had attempted to visit Sabarimala temple in December last year but failed amidst massive protests

Latest News: Two women devotees, below the age of 50 years, have entered the renowned Sabarimala Ayyappa temple in Kerala for the first time, months after the Supreme Court overturned a ban on the entry of females of menstrual age (10-50 years) from visiting the shrine.

The two Keralite women, Bindu and Kanakadurga, who are in their 40s, entered the temple premises and offered prayers at around 3:45 am on Wednesday. They were accompanied by police personnel.

The two women had attempted to visit Sabarimala temple in December last year but failed amidst massive protests.The top court had lifted a traditional ban on entry of women in the barred age group on September 28 last year.

Despite the apex court’s ruling on the matter, a string of protests took place at the Sabarimala temple and its surrounding areas in the state, wherein several women attempted to visit the shrine, but were stopped by Lord Ayyappa devotees.|Read More: BS

Kerala police probes reports of two women entering Sabarimala temple

As per news reports, the women trekked to the hill shrine early Wednesday. A video showed them entering the shrine, wearing black clothes, with their heads covered.

Latest News: The Kerala Police Wednesday was looking into media reports that two women in their forties had entered the Sabarimala temple early Wednesday, sources said. According to TV channels, the two women, Kanakadurga, 42, and Bindu, 44, also claimed that they had entered the holy shrine of Lord Ayyappa. They made efforts to enter the shrine in December but had to return due to protests.

As per news reports, the women trekked to the hill shrine early Wednesday. The video showed them entering the shrine, wearing black clothes, with their heads covered. The police sources in Thiruvananthapuram, quoting DGP Loknath Behara, said details were being collected on the issue.

Bindu, a college lecturer and CPI(ML) activist from Kozhikode district’s Koyilandy, and Kanakadurga, a civil supplies employee from Angadipuram in Malappuram, had come to Sabarimala on December 24 after 11 women activists of a Chennai-based outfit were prevented from reaching the shrine and chased away by devotees chanting Ayyappa mantras. The temple was opened on December 30 for the Makaravillaku festival and there has been a heavy rush of pilgrims.,,,Read Source Business Standard OR BS

After Sabarimala controversy, BSNL transfers activist Rehana Fathima

Sabarimala Karma Samithi Tuesday organised a protest march to the Palarivattom BSNL office, seeking her expulsion

Activist Rehana Fathima, a BSNL employee who had made an attempt to enter the Lord Ayyappa Temple in Sabarimala, has been transferred to the Palarivattom telephone exchange in the city where public contact is not required, sources said.| Business Standard 

Fathima, a telecom technician working in the customer relations section at the Boat Jetty branch here, was Tuesday transferred to the telephone exchange at Palarivattom, the sources said. However, the sources said she |BS|has not committed dereliction of duty. Sabarimala Karma Samithi Tuesday organised a protest march to the Palarivattom BSNL office, seeking her expulsion.

The Kerala Muslim Jama’ath Council had expelled Fathima from the Muslim community for “hurting sentiments of lakhs of Hindu devotees”. The activist’s house was allegedly vandalised by unidentified people while she was away trying to climb the holy hills on Friday last.| Latest News 

She made a failed attempt to reach the temple with heavy police protection. The attackers reached Fathima’s house in Panambilly Nagar here while she was climbing the hills.

Fathima, a model and activist who was part of the ‘Kiss of Love’ movement in Kochi in 2014 against alleged moral policing, was among the two women who had reached the hilltop, but had to return before reaching the sanctum sanctorum following massive protests by Ayyappa devotees.

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Kerala still at receiving end of rain fury, people shifted to relief camps

Over 13,800 people have been provided shelter at 124 relief camps in the district. Low lying areas are inundated

Rains continued to wreak havoc in many parts of Kerala with northern hill district of Wayanad experiencing widespread landslides and flooding overnight, forcing thousands of people to take shelter at relief camps, officials said today.

Several people fled their homes yesterday due to landslides and land slips in the district part of Western Ghats. People living in the downstream have been shifted to relief camps.

Over 13,800 people have been provided shelter at 124 relief camps in the district. Low lying areas are inundated, officials said.

Kerala Rains
Shutters of Banasura Sagar Dam were raised further last night to release excess water.

Many parts of northern Kerala districts including Kannur, Kasargod, Kozhikode, Malappuram and Palakad also witnessed rains last night.

Two shutters of Cheruthoni Dam part of Idukki reservoir were closed last evening.

The water level in the dam is receding further, alleviating apprehensions of the affected people living downstream, particularly in Ernakulam district.

However, water level in Mullaperiyar Dam rose to 136 ft, prompting authorities to sound caution.

Article Source : BS