The Kerala government will not file a review petition challenging the Supreme Court’s verdict allowing women of all ages to enter the Sabarimala temple, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Wednesday. “The Supreme Court verdict is final and the government has no option but to implement it,” he told reporters at a press conference in Thiruvananthapuram.
Vijayan said the state government would make arrangements for women who want to enter the shrine, reported The News Minute. “Since the Supreme Court pronounced the verdict, it is the existing law,” he said. “From this pilgrimage season, arrangements will be made for the women who are willing to go to the temple.”
Vijayan added that more women police constables would be deployed. “If the number of women police personnel is not sufficient, they will be deployed from other states,” the chief minister said. “How can women be prevented from entering the temple in the light of the judgement?”
Meanwhile, the state unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party is planning to urge the state government to enact an ordinance to ensure that women devotees are not allowed inside the temple. The Congress has also asked the Travancore Devaswom Board, which runs the temple, to file a review petition in the top court.
However, the Devaswom Board President A Padmakumar said they will not file a review petition, ANI reported.
The Pandalam royal family, which plays a vital role in the affairs of the temple, has reportedly started legal consultations to file a review petition.
While people were protesting against the court’s verdict, there are many standing in support too, Vijayan said. “Even devotees like TKA Nair (a former senior bureaucrat) and devotees who are saints have welcomed it, saying that the women who are interested should be allowed to go,” he added.
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