Pampa: Sabarimala has lived up to its tradition of being out of bounds for young women despite the Supreme Court verdict allowing the entry of women of all age groups into the hill shrine. When it closed after Thulam month pujas on Monday night, not a single young woman had managed to worship there though some 17 had tried their luck since it was opened this month. Six young women, one from Kerala and five from Telangana, who came to visit the temple on Monday, were turned away by the protestors.
The five--Padmavati,48, East Godavari, Ramana, 47, Bhagya Lakshmi,44, Masthana,47, and Chinnamma,49,-- who came on pilgrimage, gave up trekking halfway after the devotees stopped them. Later, they told the police that they had come with the help of tour operators unaware of the temple traditions.
Bindu, an activist from Kozhikode, had approached Erumely police seeking protection and travelled in a KSRTC bus with police escort from Erumely to Pampa. But she went back after she was stopped at Vattapara by the agitators.
Compared to the last four days, Pampa was peaceful on Monday. Scores of protesters, including BJP leaders S.Surendran and V.V, Rajesh, remained at Sannidanam till late in the evening.
The visual media members, who had come to Pampa, left early on Monday after the police warned them of an attack by protestors based on intelligence report. Only the print journalists remained at Pampa till evening. The nada of the temple was opened on Thulam 1 and there were agitations against the entry of young women on all the days at Pampa and Nilakkal.
