In an interesting turn of events, the Kerala unit of the Congress said on Saturday that they would bring in legislation to protect the age-old traditions at Sabarimala temple if they are voted to power by the people. The Congress proposed making any violation of traditions at the shrine “a cognizable offence”, with a punishment of up to two years’ imprisonment.

In 2018, the Supreme Court had ruled in favour of the entry of women of all ages into the temple.  The five-judge constitution bench headed by then Chief Justice Dipak Misra, in a 4:1 verdict, said that banning the entry of women in the Sabarimala temple amounts to gender discrimination and that the practice violates the rights of Hindu women. Justice Indu Malhotra, the lone woman on the bench, gave the sole dissenting opinion in the Sabarimala verdict. However, several review petitions challenging the order were filed in the Court and some larger questions arising out of the pleas were referred  to the nine-judge Bench.

Stressing that the entry of women of menstruating age into the Sabarimala temple still remains an unresolved issue, the Congress released a draft of the proposed legislation.

Senior Congress leader Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan, who released the draft of the party’s planned Sabarimala legislation on February 6, said, “The Congress wants a legislation to protect the age-old traditions at the temple. Violation of the traditions or any act challenging the traditions, as per the proposed legislation, would be reckoned as a cognizable offence. It would be known as the Sabarimala Ayyappa Devotees (Protection of Religious Rights, Customs and Usages) Act, 2021. Both the Centre and the State have rights to make legislation on the issue and if voted to power, the Congress in Kerala will introduce a law to protect the customs at the temple.” The Congress said this new Act would entail a punishment of up to two years in case of a violation.

Keeping an eye on the Hindu ‘vote-bank’

After the Supreme Court verdict, the LDF government had sought to enforce entry of women who wanted to go to the temple, with Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan aggressively pushing it in line with the Left’s and Kerala’s progressive credentials. But the initial enthusiasm has since weakened, as bubbling anger over the issue was identified as a reason for the CPM’s rout in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. With the Kerala Assembly elections approaching, Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala has made “the protection of traditions and customs at the temple” the central point of his ongoing state tour — pushing the CPM into a corner.

The LDF government in Kerala currently finds itself in a quagmire over the issue. When asked about his government’s next course of action on Friday, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan appeared noncommittal, repeating that they were waiting for the decision of the nine-judge Bench of the Supreme Court in the matter.

With the BJP emerging as a contender in the state, the Congress is looking to attract more Hindu voters to its side. BJP national executive member P K Krishnadas asked on Saturday if Pinarayi was ready to “stand with the devotees”. “Only the BJP and Hindu outfits had stood with the devotees in the Sabarimala issue. The AICC and Rahul Gandhi had then supported the state government,” he said.

Asked whether Sabarimala would be a poll issue, Congress leader Radhakrishhan said, “It is a matter that has hurt lakhs of devotees. The issue is still alive as the CPM government is not ready to protect the interests of the faithful. Around 50,000 devotees are facing cases, registered by the government during their protests against entry of young women. How can devotees forget the matter when they are fighting cases?”

Contrary to the stand taken by its state leaders, the central unit of the Congress had supported the entry of all women into Sabarimala. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in 2019 had told press-persons that he saw merit in the traditionalists’ argument for upholding the ban on the entry of young women into the temple. Interestingly, even the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) had backed women’s entry into the temple in 2016, but had changed its stance after the outburst against the SC verdict.

Click here to subscribe to The Commune on Telegram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.