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Kerala CM says ‘won’t budge’ from decision as talks over Sabarimala verdict begin
The Sabarimala temple board is likely to cite poor infrastructure to seek more time to implement the top court’s verdict. It is also expected to point to the recent floods that have damaged many facilities at Pambha the base camp for the hilltop temple
Talks between the Travancore Devasom Board (TDB), the tantri (supreme priest of Sabarimala temple) and the erstwhile royal family of Pandalam began amidst mixed signals Tuesday morning to defuse the tension in Kerala which is on the edge with protesters insisting they will not allow women inside the temple complex despite a Supreme Court order.
While TDB president A Padmakumar sounded conciliatory ahead of the talks in Thiruvananthapuram, chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan insisted that his government won’t budge from implementing the Supreme Court order. The CM spoke after the weekly cabinet meeting.
The Sabarimala temple opens on Wednesday for monthly rituals.
On the ground, devotees remained belligerent. On Tuesday, women devotees blocked other women in Nilakkal, first camp en route hilltop temple. Devotees are checking buses and other vehicles and have forced some women to alight. Many small hamlets leading to Nilakkal are tense.
Despite a large deployment of police, no protester has been stopped.
Ahead of the talks, Padmakumar who is also a former CPI (M) legislator expressed hopes for a breakthrough.
“We are confident the issue will be sorted out amicably. We will hear all stakeholders patiently. We don’t want to make it a political issue. At the same time we will convince them about our limitations,” Padmakumar said.
The Pandalam royal family has put the ball in the TDB’s court to find a solution to the imbroglio.
“We stick to our decision to maintain the status quo at the temple. It is for the TDB to find a solution,” Pandalam royal family member Sasikumar Verma said before the talks.
Earlier this month, the royal family and the tantri had turned down an invitation of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for talks
Sources said the TDB is likely to propose a plan to seek more time to implement the verdict since the row appeared to be getting out of hand.
The temple board is likely to cite poor infrastructure to seek more time to implement the top court’s verdict. It is also expected to point to the recent floods that have damaged many facilities at Pambha the base camp for the hilltop temple, sources said.
The apex court’s verdict declaring the ban on women of reproductive age from entering the Sabarimala temple as unconstitutional sparked an immediate backlash among the devotees. The BJP and the Congress in Kerala have backed the devotees which has made it difficult for the Left front government to implement the Supreme Court order.
The BJP’s ‘Long March’ which started last week from Pandalam in protest against the state government’s decision to implement the top court order without appealing for a review, reached Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday.
Hundreds of activists of Antarashtriya Hindu Parishad (AHP) also took out a rally, urging the state and central government to address the concerns of the devotees. AHP president Pravin Togadia called for strike in the state on October 18 if the government implements the apex court order.
The board and Kerala’s Left Front government, which had argued in court to allow women entry, has refused to file a review petition against the top court’s four-one majority verdict.
