On a day when the Supreme Court refused to stay its order allowing women of all ages to enter the Lord Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala, the Kerala government decided to call an all-party meeting on Thursday to discuss the issue.
The all-party meeting, to be held at the chief minister's chamber at 11 am on Thursday, will also take stock of the arrangements made for devotees ahead of the two-month long annual 'Mandala Makkaravillakku' season that will start on November 17.
The apex court on Tuesday agreed to hear a batch of review petitions filed against its order in open court on January 22. Forty-nine review pleas have been filed against the verdict.
Kerala has witnessed widespread protests since September 28 after a Constitution bench of the top court lifted a centuries-old ban on women aged between 10 and 50 from entering the hill shrine situated on the Western ghats.
With the court agreeing to hear the review pleas, opposition Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party have asked the state government not to implement the order during this pilgrimage season. Over 500 young women have so far registered for darshan in the online queue website of Kerala police.
"The CPI(M)-led LDF government should act maturely and not implement the decision during the upcoming two-month long pilgrim season," said Opposition leader in the Kerala assembly Ramesh Chennithala.
BJP state President P.S. Sreedharan Pillai, who undertook a rath yatra from Kasargod in north Kerala to Pathanamthitta, where Sabarimala is situated, to 'protect' thetemple's traditions, described the apex court decision as a "good step."
