Agitation happening all over Kerala against the Supreme Court verdict allowing women in the age group of 10-50 to worship at Sabarimala Temple, the holy shrine in the Western Ghats has spread to neighbouring Tamil Nadu.
Hundreds of devotees including young and old women, took to the streets in various places in Chennai and elsewhere in the State demanding status quo and withdrawing the permission granted to young women to pray in the shrine.
Demonstrations were held even at Lord Ayyappa Temples at Mahalingapuram, RA Puram, Anna Nagar and other temples in the capital city which drew hundreds of young and old women irrespective of caste, creed or even religion. “The sentiments of devotees have been hurt by the court judgment. These demonstrations were not organised by us. It was a spontaneous reaction from the women devotees without any persuasion and coercion. They only assembled in front of the temple to express anguish,” said K Asokan, an office bearer of Mahalingapuram Lord Ayyappa Temple.
The same was the cases with other Ayyappa Temples in the city. The Mahalingapuram Ayyappa Temple is a “shrine” that draws thousands of devotees daily and acts as a hub for pilgrims to Sabarimala Temple. It is here the devotees perform all rituals which are mandatory for the annual pilgrimage to Sabarimala. In addition to this what makes the temple a landmark in Chennai is the feeding of poor undertaken by it on a daily basis. Thousands are fed everyday with sumptuous breakfast, lunch and dinner free of cost by the temple authorities who make use of the donations received at the ‘hundi’.
Vijayashree Ramesh, a young lawyer in Chennai said that the Supreme Court verdict was completely wrong and was delivered without understanding the ground realities. “Law can never over rule age old traditions and customs. It is not impossible to agree with the verdict delivered by Justice Deepak Misra”, said Ramesh.
She pointed out that there was no ban on the entry of women in any of the Ayyappa Temples elsewhere in the world. “That is further proof that there is a difference in the sasthras governing each temple. Sabarimala shrine because of its own unique tradition and rituals is a no-go place for women devotees. But there is no embargo on women above the age of 50 from visiting it. Hence it is not gender discrimination but Sanadhana Laws which should be respected by all,” said Ramesh.
The demonstrations held at Chennai were unique in all respects. “No slogans were raised by the demonstrators. The participants numbering thousands recited hymns in praise of Lord Ayyappa.This was a new experience to the city’s population,” said Pravin Pillai, an activist working with Hindu cultural outfits in the city.
Asokan said more demonstrations and protest marches have been planned in the coming days as the Travancore Devaswam Board and Kerala Government have become adamant in their approach to make Sabarimala Temple a commercial enterprise.