Kerala Congress leaders protest against SC verdict on Sabarimala temple, accuse Left govt of interfering with shrine's traditions

The Kerala Congress held a protest in Pathanamthitta district against the Supreme Court’s verdict on Sabarimala temple which allowed women of all ages entry into the shrine. The party demanded that the Kerala government file a review petition against the Supreme Court verdict and that the Centre promulgate an ordinance to overturn the apex court’s order, reported CNN-News18. The Congress party also accused the Pinarayi Vijayan government in Kerala of interfering with tradition and customs of the Sabarimala temple. [caption id=“attachment_5323881” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Kerala unit of Congress holds Satyagraha in Pathanamthitta. CNN-News18[/caption] Addressing the media, Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala, who is also the Leader of the Opposition in the Kerala Legislative Assembly, said that the party believes in equality and there would be no deviation from that stand. However, he said that the state should file a review petition. He further added that a consensus can be arrived at regarding the issue, if the state government agrees. Chennithala had on Thursday told reporters after a meeting with former presidents and members of Travancore Devaswom Board, which manages the temple, that the party was with the Hindu faithful and would support their cause. The Kerala Congress’ call for protest has come even though the Congress’s central leadership had welcomed the Supreme Court verdict. However, the Congress in Delhi on Wednesday had denied there was any contradiction in the party’s stand at the national and the state level on the Supreme Court order. Earlier on Thursday, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) women’s wing had joined the devotees of Lord Ayyappa who held protests against the Supreme Court’s verdict. The women held up posters that said the protests were being held against the Left government for “cheating devotees” of Lord Ayyappa. Sabarimala is a prominent Hindu temple in Pathanamthitta district of Kerala. It attracts millions of pilgrims every year. The hilltop ancient temple of Lord Ayyappa remains open only for a little over four months in a year and the approach is through a forested area that involves an arduous five-kilometre trek from the Pampa river base camp. On 28 October, a five-judge constitution bench, headed by then Chief Justice Dipak Misra, had  lifted the ban  on entry of women of menstrual age into the shrine. The shrine’s head priest Tantri Kandararu Rajeevaru had said the verdict was “disappointing”, but the management accepted it.