SC to Kerala: Why can't women enter Sabarimala?

The ban on the entry of women in the age group of 10-50 into Sabarimala Temple in Kerala and the harassment of Kannada actress Jayamala for touching the feet of Lord Ayappa 20 years ago were questioned by a PIL before the Supreme Court.

The PIL filed by Indian Young Lawyers' Association and five of its women members was entertained by a Bench comprising Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal, Justice S H Kapadia and Justice C K Thakker. The Bench issued notice to Kerala government, Travancore Devaswom Board, Devaswom Commissioner, chief tantri of the Temple and the local district magistrate.

The petitioners have challenged the validity of the provisions of the Kerala Hindu Places of Public Worship (Authorisation of Entry) Rules, 1956, under which women were not allowed to enter temple premises at such time during which they were not by custom or usage allowed to enter places of worship.

Such restrictions on women in modern age are violative of the right to equality and right to freedom of religion guaranteed under the Constitution, their counsel Ravi Prakash said.

The petitioners also decried the attempt to prosecute Jayamala for desecrating the temple after she disclosed that she had touched the feet of the deity, Lord Ayappa, in 1987. They said discrimination against women in the matter of entry into a temple is neither a ritual nor a ceremony that could be associated with the Hindu religion.

"The practice of exclusion of women from worshipping Lord Ayappa is not universal. In Kolar district of Karnataka, a Dalit woman, Shantha Kumari, is the priest-in-charge of the Lord Ayappa temple, where all rituals are akin to thosefollowed in Sabarimala," the petitioners said, seeking parity in treatment of women in the two Ayappa temples.