Kerala CM holds meeting over Sabarimala verdict
Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 1: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday held a meeting over the September 28 Supreme Court verdict that threw open the Sabarimala temple to all women, and discussed steps to welcome women this upcoming season.
"The meeting has decided to increase facilities at various camps en route to the temple. At the Nilackal base camp, we have today decided to increase pilgrim facilities from 6,000 to 10,000. There will also be a special enclosure for women," State Minister for Devasoms (a watchdog body of temples which oversees the functioning of all the Devaswom Boards in Kerala), K.Surendran told the media here after the meeting.
He said the toilets for women will be in a different colour.
"Facilities at the bathing enclosure in river Pampa will also be increased."
The Minister said that while online booking for 'darshan' is already available on the temple website, authorities are also trying out ways for booking via mobile apps.
"We have decided to increase the lighting facilities all around the temple town. Under the new scheme of things, all vehicles will be parked at Nilackal and from there pilgrims will have to take the bus service. Twenty-five per cent of all buses would be kept aside for women," said Surendran.
Former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy asked Vijayan not to show any haste with regard to the judgement which has allowed women of all ages to enter the Lord Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala.
"There is no doubt that the apex court ruling should be adhered to, but it has also come as a shock to others... The state government should explore all options and not implement the verdict in a hurry," said Chandy.
Sasikumar Varma, a spokesman for the Pandalam Royal Family, which has an integral role in the affairs of the Sabarimala temple, said the palace was disappointed with the verdict and on Tuesday they will stage a protest by reciting hymns at the Pandalam temple.
Senior CPI-M leader, A.Padmakumar, who is also President of the Travancore Devaswom Board, on Monday disapproved the verdict, saying that no female members from his family would go to the temple.
State Bharatiya Janata Party President P.S.Sreedharan Pillai told the media in Kozhikode that the state government was not taking into account the feelings of a huge number of believers in the tradition of the temple.
"We will support the believers and be with them. The state government should consider coming out with an ordinance to protect the concerns."
On September 28, in a 4:1 judgment, the apex court said the ban on women in the menstruating age group, whose presence in the Lord Ayyappa temple was considered to be "impure", violated their fundamental rights and constitutional guarantee of equality.
Until now, girls below 10 years and women over 50 years were allowed to visit the hilltop shrine, located in the Western Ghats and about 130 km from Thiruvananthapuram.
The temple is hugely popular in southern India.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
