Sabarimala pilgrim season concludes, the temple closes today: CPM women workers make one more futile attempt to violate tradition

The two-month annual Mandalam-Makaravilakku pilgrim season at Sabarimala concluded today with Pandalam royal representative taking Darshan. The temple closed by 6.45 a.m. today and the royal representative escorted the Thiruvabharanam (sacred ornaments of Ayyappa) back to the Pandalam Palace.

Meanwhile, CPM women workers Reshma Nishanth and Shanila made one more futile attempt to enter the Sabarimala temple and violate the traditions during the wee hours yesterday, January 19, 2019. But, the magistrate did not give any nod hence they returned by around 0650 hours this morning. They are the same young CPM activists from CPM bastion Kannur who attempted to enter the temple after midnight on January 16 and had to return, thanks to the stiff protest from the devotees. A major part of that crowd of devotees belonged to other states.

Since then both girls were staying somewhere under comfortable police protection. There were reports of tall talks of the girls that they were determined to enter the temple and they would do it.

Still it is not clear what CM Vijayan and his coterie do plan. They are still in a shameful embarrassment after they were exposed for submitting before the Supreme Court a list of 51 young women who entered the temple and had darshan without any problem since the last three months. Government’s lawyers submitted it yesterday and within minutes, it was exposed as a fake list as it contained fake names, wrong phone numbers and wrong dates of birth. Some of them had not even come to Kerala. Some were men, not women! So, temple entry of young women before temple closes tomorrow after the Makara Vilakku season became a prestige issue for the CPM regime. Therefore, still it is not clear whether Vijayan will make one more attempt during the next 24 hours.

After hardly an hour, news kept on pouring that both women are coming back with strong support of the Pinarayi regime, Kerala Police and CPM Parivar. The Department of Forest has given anarchists the permission to go back to Shabarimala through Pullumedu, a forest avenue to go to Shabarimala. Private vehicles are not peritted in this route; it is adjacent to the sanctuary of the wild animals. Therefore, they are provided with police vehicle.