Reversing its previous support for a centuries-old ban, a board overseeing an ancient Hindu hill temple in southern India said it now favored allowing women of menstruating age to enter the temple, Reuters reported Wednesday.
Since late September, when the country’s Supreme Court ruled to end a ban on women and girls aged 10-50 from entering, the Sabarimala temple has been the site of tension, the report said.
The temple’s administrative board, the Travanscore Devaswom Board, administers the temple and had refused to abide by the court ruling and thousands of devotees have blocked women’s attempts to visit the site, Reuters reported.
On Wednesday, however, the board reversed that decision and announced it will abide by the decision, the report said.
“After the Supreme Court judgment, we discussed a lot. We realize that we should respect the judgment of the court,” lawyer Rakesh Dwivedi told Reuters after a board hearing on the matter.
The temple, which draws millions of worshippers each year, pays homage to the celibate god Ayyappan. It is one of a handful of temples in India which had barred entry to girls and women between the ages of 10 and 50, the news outlet reported.
After the Supreme Court ruling, the report said, Hindu groups physically blocked younger women from entering the temple, though a number managed to get in with help from police.
– WN.com, Jack Durschlag
