Minister Jayamala supports SC verdict on women’s entry into Sabarimala

Team Udayavani, Jul 19, 2018, 4:35 PM IST

Bengaluru: Karnataka minister for women and child development, Jayamala, turned out support of the Supreme Court (SC) observation that women have the constitutional right to enter and pray at temples and they need not rely upon laws for the same. 

The Supreme Court bench, which has been hearing a batch of petitions recorded by different people and associations scrutinizing the validity of ban forced by Sabarimala temple administration against entry of women aged between 10 and 50 into the temple premises, had mentioned the above objective facts. Jayamala said on Wednesday that under the constitution, no distinction can be made between men and women. Addressing media people here, she said that there can’t be distinctive temples for men and women. 

The minister communicated her firm conviction that giving preference in offering prayers to one sex over the other is absolutely wrong. She admitted that she is a great devotee of Lord Ayyappa, the divinity at Sabarimala. 

It might be reviewed that after a divine astrological query over the Sabarimala temple’s sacredness was organised several years ago, the astrologers, in addition to other things, had said that a female devotee had entered Sabarimala premises, which had meddled with the holiness of the temple. Jayamala had then claimed that she was the person who had entered the temple in 1986. After she put forth this statement, Kerala police had, in 2010, filed charge-sheet against her for violating religious traditions.