Manithi Women’s collective, along with women of Kerala are likely to visit Sabarimala temple in Pathanamthitta within two months.
Chennai: A Chennai based group, Manithi Women’s Collective, is all set to visit Kerala's Sabarimala temple this year. The group said that they would visit the temple and seek darshan of Lord Ayyappa.
A member of the group, Selvi told media that the group decided to visit Sabarimala after chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s statement in the Assembly on November 5. In the Assembly, Vijayan stated that the Supreme Court verdict on Sabarimala would be executed.
Also read: One year after Sabarimala verdict; women say ‘will wait till 50 to visit Ayyappa’
On September 28, 2018, Supreme Court verdict allowed the entry of women of all age groups into the famous shrine Sabarimala.
On December 23, 2018, women from Tamil Nadu’s Manithi team, who moved towards the Sannidhanam to have darshan at Sabarimala returned without entering the temple after a massive protest. The group withdrew their decision to enter the temple after protesters chanting Ayyappa mantras surrounded them.
Kerala state joint co-ordinator of Hindu helpline Binil Somasundaram said, "We will protest for the rituals till our death and won't step back in our protest over women's entry in Sabarimala temple". He added that a group of the Hindu helpline team will be deployed in the shrine from November 16 to protest women's entry. "Last year we protested, and Manithi group members had to return back, this time also the same will occur if they try to enter the Hindu shrine," said Binil Somasundaram.
A few months ago, two women from Kerala, Bindu and Kanakadurga, with the help of government officials managed to enter the shrine. This triggered massive protests in the state. Kanakadurga tells MyNation when asked if she has plans to accompany the Manithi team and enter the shrine again, that she is still thinking about entering the shrine once again but will not accompany the team.
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