‘Will oppose entry of women into Sabarimala temple’: TDB makes ‘U-turn’ on previous stance

Making a ‘U-turn’ on its previous stance, the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) on Monday decided to oppose the 2018 Supreme Court verdict permitting women of menstruating age to enter into the Sabarimala temple.

The TDB meeting held here on Monday decided to file an affidavit in the Supreme Court opposing the entry of women of menstruating age at the Sabarimala temple and to uphold the tradition, customs and rituals in the shrine . The TDB meeting on Monday passed a resolution in this regard.

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Addressing the media here, TDB president K Jayakumar said the decision was based on the board’s statutory obligation to uphold temple customs and traditions. “The board discussed in detail the issue related to the entry of women in Sabarimala. The customs, traditions and rituals in Sabarimala should be protected. The board has no confusion and we are with the devotees,” K Jayakumar said.

He said that the TDB does not support the Supreme Court’s 2018 verdict permitting the entry of women of menstrual age at the temple. “The TDB has never supported the entry of women .Individuals may have supported it,” the TDB president said.

The Supreme Court had last month directed that all parties concerned to inform the court of their stand on the issue by March 15. It was in this context that the TDB meeting on Monday decided to oppose the 2018 Supreme Court verdict permitting women of menstruating age to enter into the Sabarimala temple.

In 2020, when the Supreme Court considered petitions seeking a review of the women’s entry verdict, the TDB’s counsel had taken the position that there was no need to review the judgment and had advanced arguments supporting that stand. The present decision marks a departure from that position. In effect, the Devaswom Board’s new position is for a review of the 2018 verdict of the apex court in the Sabarimala women entry issue.

In 2018, the Supreme Court allowed women of all age groups to enter Sabarimala temple, sticking down a 1991 Kerala High Court verdict that upheld the centuries-old practice of prohibiting women of menstruating age from entering the hill shrine.

The LDF government headed by Pinarayi Vijayan stood firmly by the apex court verdict. It facilitated the entry of two women of menstruating age group- Bindu Ammini and Kanakadurga, into the hill shrine, invoking constitutional rights and gender equality. It appears that the LDF government has now changed its stance. It is now moving cautiously without hurting the sentiments of the devotees and believers, fearing backlash from the electorally significant Hindu social organisations.