Nilakkal/Pamba: The arrest of Bharathiya Janatha Party (BJP) state general secretary K Surendran after being detained at Nilakkal, the base camp for Sabarimala pilgrimage, triggered mounting concerns about the law and order situation in the state.
Party activists will block road traffic on National Highways on Sunday, the BJP said.
On Saturday night, police stopped Surendran at Nilakkal from proceeding to the Lord Ayyappa temple. He was then taken to the Chittar police station.
Right-wing Hindu activists started arriving at the station, stepping up the campaign against the Supreme Court verdict allowing women of all ages to enter the hill shrine.
The BJP took out a march to the secretariat in Thiruvananthapuram to protest the police action against Surendran and other leaders.
Woman turned away
Mary Sweety, a woman believed to be below 50, reached Chengannur seeking permission to go to Pamba. Sweety, who was turned away from Pamba during the recent Thulam pujas of Sabarimala temple, said this time she only wanted to go to Pamba, and not the hill shrine. However, she abandoned the plan following protest by Ayyappa devotees at Chengannur.
Sasikala gets bail
Hindu Aikya Vedi leader K P Sasikala, who was arrested en route to Sabarimala, was granted bail by a court in Thiruvalla on Saturday. The police had earlier said that she would be taken to Sabarimala, if the court was to grant bail. Sasikala, who takes rest at Koonankara Sabari Saranashram on Saturday night, would trek the Sabarimala hills on Sunday morning.
Sasikala was arrested at 1.30 am Saturday after being detained for nearly five hours at Marakkootam following her refusal to backtrack from proceeding to the hill shrine.
Achara Samrakshana Samithi state convenor Prithvipal and BJP leader P Sudhir were also taken into custody from Pamba. Sasikala was then taken to the Ranni police station, where she began a hunger strike.
Around 2000 Sabarimala Karma Samithi workers surrounded the police station at Ranni in Pathanamthitta, urging the police to take Sasikala back to Sabarimala and allow her to offer prayers. They also sought action against the officers who arrested her. Though several attempts were made to neutalise the situation, the workers and Sasikala stood firm on their decision to visit the temple. Finally, around Saturday afternoon, the police agreed to take her to court, putting an end to the standoff outside the police station.
Hartal
A dawn-to-dusk hartal called by Hindu Aikya Vedi to protest the arrest of its leader KP Sasikala has brought life to a standstill in Kerala. Even pilgrims' journey to Sabarimala was affected as public transport kept off the roads. The BJP has backed the call for hartal.
The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) halted its bus services in the state following the hartal call. However, private vehicles are plying in many parts of the state. In state capital Thiruvananthapuram, road blockades by Hindu outfits have been reported in some areas.
The hartal affected pilgrims too. The number of pilgrims who reached Erumely on Saturday, the first day of Malayalam month of 'Vrischikom,' is far less compared to earlier years.
Security at Sabarimala
Thousands of pilgrims offered prayers at Lord Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala early Saturday, the first day of Malayalam month of 'Vrischikom'. Pilgrims, including children, queued up in large numbers since the temple opened at 3 am.
The temple had opened Friday evening for the two-month annual pilgrim season as a stand-off continued over the entry of women of child-bearing age into the shrine. All regular pujas began this morning under the supervision of the new Melshanti (chief priest) Vasudevan Nampoothiri.
Unprecedented security arrangements have been made at the shrine.
The temple opened Friday amid a tense standoff involving social activist Trupti Desai in Kochi and a move by its administrator to seek time from the Supreme Court to implement its verdict.
Social activist and leader of the Bhumata Brigade Trupti Desai, who has vowed to offer prayers at the temple, returned to Pune at 9.25 pm on Friday after she was prevented from leaving the Kochi airport for over 14 hours since her arrival by devotees opposing entry of women of child-bearing age into the hill shrine.
The 41-day Mandalam festival will conclude on December 27 after Mandala pooja, when the shrine will close after the 'Athazhapuja' in the evening. It would reopen for the Makaravilakku festival on December 30.
The Makaravilakku festival would be celebrated on January 14 after which the shrine will close on January 20, marking the culmination of the pilgrim season, when laksh of devotees are expected to throng the shrine.
The temple complex and nearby areas had witnessed widespread protests after the state government decided to implement the September 28 apex court verdict.
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UDF leaders and workers proceeded to Pamba on a KSRTC bus from Nilakkal.
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Special restrictions have been imposed in the Pullumedu route. Pilgrims from Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam districts will be denied entry through this path. Devotees from other districts are permitted entry through Pullumedu after taking their photographs. The restrictions were imposed after a circular allegedly being issued by BJP sought devotees from Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam to arrive at the temple premises from today to intensify the agitations.
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BJP MPs Nalin Kumar Kateel and V Muraleedharan reviewing the facilities at Nilakkal. Photo: Rahul R Pattom
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SP Yathish Chandra said MLAs will be allowed to proceed. Others may go to Pamba on KSRTC buses, he added.
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The UDF team heading to Sabarimala was stopped by the police at Nilakkal. The UDF leaders have started a sit-in.
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KSRTC cancelled 50 of its 310 chain services from Nilakkal to Pamba owing to poor patronage. Only three of the 10 electric buses are conducting services now.
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Senior Congress leaders led by former chief minister Oommen Chandy will visit Sabarimala premises on Tuesday. BJP MPs including V Muraleedharan and Nalin Kumar Kateel will also arrive at the temple on Tuesday.
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A minor protest broke out at the Sabarimala Temple late Monday night after 20 pilgrims were asked to move out of the shrine's 'Vavarunada' area, a highly sensitive zone, police said.
However, the protesters were soon pacified by the police and taken to Nadapanthal area, Superintendent of Police (special officer) Pratheesh Kumar said.
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The temple closed for the day at 11 pm in a peaceful atmosphere.
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A group of 22 devotees staged a 'Namajapa' protest near Vavruswamy Nada on the Sabarimala temple premises.
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BJP MPs Nalin Kumar Katteel and V Muraleedharan will visit Sabarimala tomorrow in a bid to understand the hardships being faced by devotees there. They will arrive at Nilakkal at 10 am. Party state secretary J R Padmakumar and Pathanamthitta district president Ashokan will accompany the MPs. The team will visit Pamba and Sannidhanam, a press release said.
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BJP general secretary K Surendran was denied bail on Monday by a Pathanamthitta court. He can now move the Kerala High Court seeking bail.
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Sixty-eight people who had been arrested from Sabarimala Sannidhanam were remanded on Monday. They would be taken to Pujappura central jail. Their bail plea will be heard on November 21.
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One more plea seeking urgent hearing of writ and review petitions of September 28 verdict have been rejected by the SC
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TDB files plea in SC, seeking more time to implement Sabarimala order
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A Namajapa protest that was going on the past 12 hours outside the police station has been called off
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68 protesters, who were detained Sunday night and taken to Maniyar police camp in Pathanamthitta district, would be taken to court soon.
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Protests outside press club in Kochi, 3 young women had made a fervent plea to visit Sabarimala
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Women who want to visit Sabarimala, hold press meet in Kochi
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Refuting union minister Kannanthanam's allegations, Devaswom Minister Kadakampally Surendran said though Rs 100 crore was promised for Sabarimala, only Rs 18 crore was allotted.
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Kerala HC says will not allow excessive police intervention in Sabarimala
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Chennithala said it was police high-handedness. “Innocent devotees who sought shelter at Valiya Nadappandhal were also arrested. They all are not Sangh Parivar activists who reached there to create trouble. Arresting real devotees, who climb the hills to offer prayers, could not be accepted,” he added.
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Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala attacked CM Pinarayi Vijayan over the police action against devotees at Sabarimala Sannidhanam and asked if Kerala was under the rule of Hitler.
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Police have booked 40 BJP-Yuva Morcha workers in Thodupuzha for hurling stones at police station and vandalising KSRTC buses. However, no arrests have been made
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Namajapa protests outside the CM's hall in Kozhikode
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Kerala CM Pinarayi addresses a meeting of KUWJ in Kozhikode
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Reshma Nishanth, from Kannur, heads to Sabarimala. She has reached Ernakulam.
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Alphons Kannanthanam criticised the state government for the police action at Sannidhanam on Sunday
The Supreme Court is slated to hear petitions seeking review of its September 28 order in January, but has refused to stay it. The Travancore Devaswom Board that manages the shrine would file the time-extension plea in Supreme Court on Monday.
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