Trupti Desai, an activist who has been agitating for womens’ right to enter the inner sanctum of the Shani Shingnapur temple in Maharashtra, was detained while she was on her way to Ahmednagar. Desai, a member of the Bhumata Rangragini Brigade, and more than 350 other women had planned to stage a protest against the temple’s centuries-old ban on women entering its inner sanctum.
Desai had told reporters that she received a threat letter earlier in the month. She had also met Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis after the state took up the matter and agreed to facilitate talks between activists and the temple. Desai was reportedly on her way to the temple on Monday when state police detained her.
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