The Lord Ayyappa temple at Sabarimala opened for a two-day special puja on Monday evening amid unprecedented security, with hundreds of police personnel and armed commandos deployed at the hill shrine. This is the second time the temple has opened after the Supreme Court lifted a centuries-old custom of banning women aged between 10 and 50 from entering the shrine. According to police, nearly 10,000 devotees have already reached Sannidhanam (temple complex) on Monday before the temple closed for the day at 10 pm.
Top developments of the day
Temple opens for special puja: Temple tantri (head priest) Kandararu Rajeevaru and melshanti (chief priest) Unnikrishnan Namboothiri jointly opened the portals of the sanctum sanctorum around 5pm. No special puja was performed on Monday and the temple closed at 10pm. It will open again on Tuesday for the "Sree Chitira Atta Thirunal" puja to mark the birth anniversary of the last king of the princely state of Travancore, Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma.
Woman reaches Pamba to trek hill: A 30-year-old woman, along with her husband and two kids, approached police at Pamba, a base camp of the Sabarimala pilgrimage, seeking protection to trek the hill. Anju, a native of Cherthala in Alappuzha district, expressed her willingness to return after devotees in large number started protest at Pamba and Sannidhanam. "She is at the police control room here now. She says she wants to trek to the hill shrine. No decision has been taken so far on whether to take her to the temple or not today," a police official said.
Heavy security at Sannidhanam: Unprecedented security arrangements have been made in the backdrop of protests by devotees and Hindu outfits from October 17-22 opposing the state government's decision to implement the Supreme Court verdict permitting women of all age groups to offer prayers at the hill shrine. Around 2,300 personnel, including a 20-member commando team and 100 women, have been deployed for the security of the devotees. At least 15 women police personnel, who are over 50 years of age, have been deployed at Sannidhanam, police said.
HC slams government: Coming down heavily on the state government, the Kerala High Court made it clear that it had no right to interfere in the day-to-day affairs of the Ayyappa temple at Sabarimala and its role was confined to maintaining law and order in the area. The court also flayed the government and the police over causing hardships to the pilgrims trekking to Sabarimala for the "darshan" of Lord Ayyappa.
BJP leader in soup: BJP Kerala unit chief P.S. Sreedharan Pillai courted a controversy as TV channels aired a video clip in which he purportedly said the Sabarimala temple head priest consulted him before threatening the closure of the shrine if women in 10-50 age group entered it. As his remarks at a BJP Yuva morcha event in Kozhikode on Sunday drew strong reactions from the CPI(M)-led ruling LDF and opposition Congresss. Pillai, an advocate practicing in the Kerala High Court, said the priest had called him seeking a legal clarification, which he had given. However, head priest Kandararu Rajeevaru told reporters at the temple that he had only consulted senior priest Kandararu Mohanararu on the matter.
Restrictions fume devotees: Earlier in the morning, devotees, who arrived at Erumeli since Sunday evening, protested for not being allowed to leave for Pamba and Sannidhanam. They blocked traffic chanting 'Ayyappa Saranam'. Media personnel have also not been allowed to leave Nilackal for Pamba and Sannidhanam from the base camp here till 9am this morning.
The doors of Sabarimala had opened for six days on October 17 for the first time since the Supreme Court allowed women of menstruating age to enter the shrine but none could make it to its hallowed precincts amid a welter of protests and violent clashes. Valiant attempts by around a dozen women, including activists and journalists in the 10-50 years age group, to script history came to nought as frenzied devotees of Lord Ayyappa heckled and hassled them and forced them to retreat.
—With inputs from PTI
