Thiruvananthapuram, November 4: The security has been tightened in several areas near Sabarimala Temple in Kerala to avoid any untoward incident as the holy shrine will be re-opened on November 5. Inspector General (IG) Ashok Yadav told ANI, “Around 1500 police personnel have been deployed from Pamba to Sannidhanam.” In the wake of the recent protests against the entry of women of menstrual age into the Sabarimala temple, Pathanmthitta district collector imposed section 144 in Sannidhanam, Pamba, Nilakkal, and Elavunkal from November 4-6.
The Supreme Court on October 31, refused to give an early hearing to review petitions over the entry for all women in the temple. Chief Justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi said temple would open for 24 hours on November 5 and November 6 and that court has already fixed the matter for hearing after November 11. The Lord Ayyappa temple in Kerala will be opened on November 5 for the one-day festival of ‘Chithira Attavisesham' and will remain open till November 6.
Around 1500 police personnel have been deployed from Pamba to Sannidhanam: IG Ashok Yadav to ANI on #SabarimalaTemple to open for a day tomorrow #Kerala pic.twitter.com/3bKEV8Tfm1
— ANI (@ANI) November 4, 2018
Earlier this month, the areas near the temple witnessed violent protests over the apex court’s verdict allowing the entry of women between the ages of 10 and 50 into the holy shrine. As per reports, as many as 3505 protestors have been arrested so far in connection with the violence, while around 529 cases were registered. As per reports, the Kerala High Court has also directed the state government to report on police action after the violent protests erupted in the state in October.
Meanwhile, The Indian Police Service Association of Kerala on Friday condemned the verbal and digital attack against certain police officers in the state in connection with the recent Sabarimala incidents. In a resolution passed at a meeting in Thiruvananthapuram, the association said attempt had been made to "vilify" and "intimidate" police officers who carried out their duties during the recent violent protests held against the entry of women of all ages into the Lord Ayyappa temple at Sabarimala.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 04, 2018 12:05 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).