Sabarimala row: Supreme Court to hear review pleas in open court on Monday

The Supreme Court on Tuesday accepts to hear the 49 review petitions on the Sabarimala temple judgment. As per the report, the apex court announced that it will hear the petitions challenging it previous order — September 28 — allowing women to enter the shrine in Kerala on November 22.

The court in its previous order, the bench, headed by CJI Dipka Misra, had announced that women of all ages would be allowed to enter the Sabarimala temple. With that judgment, the court had ended the ban which prevented the women of menstruating age — 10 and 50 years — from entering the shrine to celibate Lord Ayyappa.

Observing that restrictions can’t be treated as essential religious practice, the bench scrapped the old traditions and had referred the custom “almost like untouchability”.

Though, the order was passed, but no women were allowed to enter the shrine and as a result, political drama entered the scene. While the BJP and RSS demanded the Supreme Court to rethink on the order, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan tried to impose it. Even after using the police force, no women could enter the shrine.

Last month over 3,000 people were arrested for creating a ruckus over the issue and over 500 people have been chargesheeted by the police for violence. It is to be known that the temple remains only open for 127 days in a year and can be accessed through a forest.

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