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By APD writer Rishika Chauhan
NEW DELHI, October 19(APD) -- A recent court judgement concerning a temple in the southern part of India called Sabarimala has become a cause of unrest in the country, as violent protests erupted at the temple on Wednesday.
Last month, the top court of the country, the Supreme Court lifted a centuries-old ban on women of menstruating age entering the Sabarimala temple, located in the province of Kerala.
The court ruling said that the Indian Constitution did not permit discrimination and exclusion on the basis of biological and physiological features. Hence women of all ages should be allowed to enter the temple, as it was their right.
Sabarimala temple
However, the court ruling did not go down well with some groups, who protested against the order and attempted to not allow women an entry in the temple on Wednesday when the doors of the 100-year-old temple were opened.
While the Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan assured that women’s entry would not be blocked and police will be stationed at the temple, fringe groups made it hard for women to enter the temple.
Instances of women journalists being attacked and heckled were also reported. However, the day also saw a number of determined women who had come to defy the anti-social elements and visit the temple.
The court verdict and the support of women groups around the country are being termed as a successful attempt to fight the patriarchal structure of the Indian society.
(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)
