When Sabarimala reopened for two days of special pooja, on Tuesday, there was no respite from the violence that had gripped the hill shrine ever since the Supreme Court passed an order allowing women of menstruating age entry into the temple. At the very outset, the fracas had taken on a distinctly political colour, with the saffron party alleging brutal suppression of devotees at the hands of the police, and the ruling CPI(M) claiming an RSS hand in the protests that continue to rattle Sabarimala. Congress, in defiance of the stance taken by the party high command, said it stood by the concerns of the devotees, and charged both the CPI(M) and the RSS of attempting to reap electoral benefits by making the most of the stormy situation.
With the temple set to reopen for the mandala pooja season, the strife looks set to get even more protracted. The BJP had announced it would take out a rath yatra from Kasaragod to Pathanamthitta, where the Sabarimala temple is located, from November 8 to 13 to "save the customs and traditions" of the hill shrine. This was hardly a solely Hindu issue, according to the BJP. “Along the route, we will visit 52 Christian institutions, and 12 Islamic centres to seek their blessings. The atheist government in Kerala wanted to destroy faith and the uniqueness of Sabarimala temple,” said BJP state president Sreedharan Pillai, in a report by The Indian Express. It is worthwhile noting that prominent minority parties like the Muslim League had come out openly in support of their Hindu counterparts, and against the government's decision to implement the SC order. A Muslim woman organisation had taken to the Kerala High Court seeking an order for entry into all mosques, in the model and manner of Sabarimala litigation. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, however, stood firm in his decision to enforce the Supreme Court order. If Sabarimala was an opening that the BJP was waiting for, to gain inroads in a state that has rejected them thus far, for Vijayan, this was a make or break political gambit as a large section of the media, feminists and the progressive sections of the state announced unwavering support for him. Add to the cauldron the fact that, unlike most temples, fervent devotion to the deity cut across caste and even religious lines—devotees pray to Ayyappa's Muslim friend Vavar before embarking on the climb.
Organisations like the Nair Service Society (NSS), an outfit of Kerala's influential Nair community, said it stood firmly with the devotees opposing entry of women in the menstrual age group. NSS, which has filed a petition seeking review of the Supreme Court verdict over women's entry, held protests with its members chanting Ayyappa mantra across the state to mark its Flag Day. NSS General Secretary G. Sukumaran Nair said the outfit would organise namapjapa yajna (chanting of Ayyappa mantra) on November 13, the day the Supreme Court will consider the review petitions filed against its order lifting the age-old ban on entry of women in the age group of 10-50 into the hill temple.
Leaders of various right-wing Hindu outfits met on November 1 to discuss the plan for the second phase of agitation against the Supreme Court verdict. Organisers said leaders of VHP, Hindu Aikyavedi and Ayyappa devotee organisations and spiritual leaders will meet under the banner of Sabarimala Karma Samiti.
On Tuesday, there was high drama at the Sabarimala temple complex, with devotees protesting against the entry of a woman pilgrim, suspecting her to be in the menstrual age. Lalitha (52) from Tirur had come to the temple with 19 relatives, including women, for her grandson's chorunnu (rice giving ceremony). She was near the nadapandal (area just before devotees climb the 18 steps to reach the sanctum sanctorum) when her group was suddenly surrounded by about 200 frenzied protesters clapping and chanting Ayyappa saranam mantra, suspecting that she was below 50 years.
Police immediately intervened and after ascertaining the woman's age, informed the protesting devotees that she was not in the 'barred' age group and escorted her away.
