Meanwhile, on Monday, the Kerala government submitted an affidavit in the High Court claiming that the Sabarimala temple is secular and it could be a Buddhist shrine. The government also said that the Sabarimala issue has to be discussed with Muslim and Christian organisations including the Waqf board, projecting the holy temple of Hindus as a disputed site.
Sabarimala has opened twice since the supreme court verdict came, but not a single devout Hindu woman tried to violate the temple tradition. The police and the state government were criticised by the High Court several times in connection with the massive police crackdown of devotees in which as many as 4000 people were arrested for protesting against the CPM government’s haste in implementing the verdict. The temple will open for the two-month long ‘mandala pooja-makaravilakku utsav’ pilgrimage season on November 17.
