Women entered through restricted gate: Panel

The panel of observers appointed to oversee the affairs of Sabarimala on Wednesday informed the Kerala High Court that it was not known how the two women escorted by five unidentified men were let into the upper Thirumuttam of the temple through a gate through which police do not allow devotees.

In a report submitted to the court, the panel submitted that that Bindu and Kanakadurga entered the sanctum through the door behind the ‘kodimaram’. The report filed on the basis of inputs by the Sabarimala Special Commissioner said the vigilance wing of the TDB had examined the CCTV footage and reported that at 3.51 a.m. on January 2 two women wearing black dresses and without ‘irumudikkettu’ were seen walking to the staff gate at Vadakkenada along with five men.

It also added that a young man accompanying the women had a conversation with the duty personnel at the staff gate. Thereafter, the women and the five men were seen climbing the stairs to the upper Thirumuttam. At that time the duty personnel at the security check point was not seen and the group passed the point. Thereafter, a policeman in uniform led them upstairs. At about 3.53 a.m. the young women were seen entering the temple through the entrance of the Balikkalpura. Then the group had darshan and they were seen walking to the south of the shrine, the report said.

DCP’s report

Meanwhile, in a report filed before the court, Pathanamthitta District Police Chief (DCP) T. Narayanan said four policemen on duty at Pampa had accompanied the women to the Sannidhanam in civil dress. None of the devotees had any difficulty when they had darshan.

All these pointed to the fact that many of the protests that happened when women, aged below 50 years, attempted to enter Sabarimala were “orchestrated by right-wing elements”.