The Supreme Court on Tuesday said it may not start hearing from January 22 the pleas seeking review of the Sabarimala verdict, as one of the judges is on medical leave.
A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi said that Justice Indu Malhotra, the lone woman judge on the five-judge Constitution Bench that had delivered the verdict in the Sabarimala case, is on leave on medical grounds.
"Justice Indu Malhotra is on leave due to some medical reasons," the bench said. The bench said that the hearing, which is scheduled to start from January 22, may not take place.
The observation came after lawyer Mathews J. Nedumpara mentioned the case and sought live-streaming of hearing on the petitions seeking review of the Supreme Court verdict allowing all women inside the Sabarimala temple.
The Supreme Court had on September 28 last year said that banning the entry of women into the Sabarimala shrine was gender discrimination and the practice violated rights of Hindu women.
