Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday said the state government would not file a review petition challenging the Supreme Court order, allowing the entry of women of all age groups to the hill shrine of Sabarimala.
“The verdict of the apex court is the law of the land and the government can only implement it,” Pinarayi said. “The Supreme Court gave the verdict after taking into account diverse opinions among devotees, and the state government can only accept the verdict and implement it. Requisite arrangements have to be put in place to receive women pilgrims of all age groups to the temple,” he added.
“If women devotees come to visit temple, we can't stop them,” the chief minister said.
He further said that women police personnel would be deployed around the temple premises, and plans are afoot to depute women cops from other southern states, too.
The chief minister added that the government can’t go against the observations of the Supreme Court.
The apex court had on September 28 lifted the ban on the entry of women aged between 10-50 years to the forest shrine, holding that the centuries-old Hindu religious practise was illegal and unconstitutional.
Devaswom Board's decision
“It was not evident on what basis Travancore Devaswom Board president A. Padmakumar stated that a review petition challenging the order would be led in the apex court. The board has not taken such a decision," the chief minister clarified.
Travancore Devaswom Board manages the shrine. The TDB chief said the real devotees who respect the traditions and rituals of Sabarimala and know the circumstances were not likely to visit the shrine.
The Devaswom board president had told media after meeting the chief minister the other day that no woman from his family would visit the Sabarimala temple.
“It might be his personal opinion but media would construe it as an official announcement," the chief minister said.
