Uneasy calm at Sabarimala

Electronic media retreat from Sannidhanam, Pampa

October 22, 2018 08:21 am | Updated 08:21 am IST - SABARIMALA

Inspector General of Police, S. Sreejith, offers prayers at the Ayyappa Temple at Sabarimala on Monday morning.

Inspector General of Police, S. Sreejith, offers prayers at the Ayyappa Temple at Sabarimala on Monday morning.

An uneasy calm prevails at the holy hillock of Sabarimala and in the foothills of Pampa on the last day of the monthly rituals at the Ayyappa Temple here on Monday.

Almost all television crew, except the Janam, Amrita, and a few others, have packed off from Sabarimala and Pampa in the wee hours of Monday, fearing attack from the belligerent Sangh Parivaar protesters who have threatened them alleging partisan reporting.

The IG of Police S. Sreejith is camping at Sabarimala Sannidhanam. Bharatiya Janata Party leaders, K. Surendran and V. V. Rajesh, are also camping at the holy hillock.

The Pandalam Palace managing Committee leaders Sasikumar Varma and Narayana Varma have reached Pampa to attend the atonement rituals, prescribed during the astrological consultation, earlier, to be performed at Sabarimala on Monday.

The police is trying to clear the protesters, without using force, camping at the holy hillock before noon. Neither the TDB president nor members are present at Sabarimala.

Being the last day of the monthly rituals (Pooja), the pilgrim inflow too is lean.The temple will be closed after the Atazhapuja at 10 p.m.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.