Meenakshi Lekhi says women taken to Sabarimala temple like 'transgenders,' accuses Pinarayi Vijayan of making site a 'clash zone'

Two days after two women entered the Sabarimala temple, BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi said on Friday that women were taken to the temple “like transgenders” at night, and said that if they had been devotee women, they should have come during the day. Lekhi also criticised Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan for converting the shrine into a clash zone.

After the women entered the temple, violence erupted across Kerala, which also resulted in the death of a BJP protester on Wednesday. On Thursday, the Sabarimala Action Council — an umbrella outfit of Hindu organisations — had called for a dawn-to-dusk hartal in the state on Thursday. However, in many places, the protest turned into a violent street fight between the BJP and CPM. Meanwhile, the head priest of the Lord Ayyappa temple was criticised by Vijayan for closing the temple for a “purification” ritual after the two women achieved the historic feat. However, the Supreme Court on Thursday refused to grant an urgent hearing to a contempt plea against the chief priest.