I/II. https://www.timesnownews.com/india/article/sabarimala-temple-kerala-supreme-court-menstruating-women-entry-all-age-groups-right-to-equality-dipak-misra-indu-malhotra-dy-chandrachud-hindu/291285
Sabarimala Temple now open to women of all ages, right to equality upheld: SC’s key observationsIndia Updated Sep 28, 2018 | 12:35 IST | Times Now Digital In a judgement with far-reaching implications, the Supreme Court on Friday removed the ban on menstruating women between the 10-50 age groups from entering Kerala's famed Sabarimala Temple. Sabarimala Temple in Kerala Sabarimala Temple in Kerala | Photo Credit: BCCL New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday ruled that women of all ages can enter the Lord Ayyappa temple at Sabarimala in Kerala. The historic judgement was delivered by a five-judge Constitution bench of the apex court, headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra and also including Justices R F Nariman, D Y Chandrachud, A M Khanwilkar, and Indu Malhotra. In the 4:1 majority verdict, the top court said not allowing entry of women into the temple amounts to gender discrimination and is violative of the rights of Hindu women. The Supreme Court was pronouncing its judgement on the entry of women of menstrual age in the Sabarimala shrine. Of the five judges, Justice R F Nariman and D Y Chandrachud concurred with the CJI and Justice A M Khanwilkar, while Justice Indu Malhotra gave a dissenting verdict. Here are some of the key observations made by the judges: Chief Justice Dipak Misra The Chief Justice said that banning entry of women into the shrine is gender discrimination and devotion cannot be subjected to discrimination. Law and society are tasked with the task to act as levellers, CJI Misra said, adding patriarchal notions cannot be allowed to trump equality in devotion. Chief Justice Misra noted that since religion is a way of life and links life with divinity, the Sabarimala Temple practice of banning the entry of menstruating women violates the rights of Hindu women. Devotees of Lord Ayyappa do not constitute separate denomination, the CJI said further, adding the practice of exclusion of women of 10-50 age group cannot be regarded as essential religious practice. “Kerala law denies rights to women on ground of physiological reasons,” CJI Misra said. Justice RF Nariman Justice Nariman ruled that Sabarimala temple custom barring entry of women of 10-50 age is not supported by Article 25 and 26 of the Constitution, while striking down Rule 3(b) of Kerala Hindu Places of Worship. Justice D Y Chandrachud Justice Chandrachud noted in his verdict that one cannot use religion to deny rights of worship to women. “It is also against human dignity,” he said. Justice Chandrachud also said that devotees of Lord Ayyappa do not constitute separate religious denominations and prohibition on women due to non-religious reasons is a grim shadow of discrimination going on for centuries. “Popular notion about morality can be offensive to dignity of others. Any custom or religious practice if violates dignity of women by denying them entry due to her physiology is unconstitutional,” Justice Chandrachud stated. He said banning women of a particular age group from entering the temple cannot be an essential practice of religion, as such an exclusion is violative of their right to liberty, dignity and equality. “Exclusion of women because she menstruates is utterly unconstitutional,” Justice Chandrachud ruled. Justice Indu Malhotra Justice Indu Malhotra, who gave a separate dissenting verdict, observed that it is not for the courts to decide which religious practices are to be scrapped except in issues of social evils like 'Sati'. It is important for maintaining the secular atmosphere in India that issues that have deep religious connotation are not tinkered with. “Issue in this case is not limited to Sabarimala only. It will have far reaching implications for other places of worships as well,” Justice Malhotra said. She noted that the right to equality conflicts with the right to worship of devotees of Lord Ayyappa. “Notions of rationality cannot be brought into matters of religion. India has diverse religious practices and constitutional morality would allow anyone to profess a religion they believe,” the judge said. She noted that the doctrine of equality cannot supersede the fundamental right to worship under Article 25. “Lord Ayyappa’s devotees form a separate religious denomination worthy of protection and it is not for the court to interfere in religious practices even if it appears discriminatory,” Justice Malhotra stated. II. https://www.timesnownews.com/india/article/sabarimala-temple-kerala-supreme-court-menstruating-women-entry-all-age-groups-right-to-equality-dipak-misra-indu-malhotra-dy-chandrachud-hindu/291285 SC verdict on entry of women in Sabarimala temple hailedIndia Updated Sep 28, 2018 | 12:22 IST | Times Now Digital The Supreme Court on Friday ended the ban on entry of women of age group 10-50 in the Sabarimala temple in Kerala, which is dedicated to Lord Ayyappa. SC verdict on entry of women in Sabarimala temple hailed Representative Image | Photo Credit: PTI New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday ended the ban on entry of women of age group 10-50 in the Sabarimala temple in Kerala, which is dedicated to Lord Ayyappa. The court opened the gates for women of all ages and said the ban was violative of their fundamental rights and constitutional guarantees. The judgment was in majority, with only Justice Indu Malhotra being the only one to give dissenting judgment. As the women celebrate the judgment, Kerala minister Kadakampalli Surendran said that he welcomes the SC verdict. It is a progressive judgment and we will decide how to implement court judgment, he said. Actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan also reacted to the verdict and said, “That's fair enough. I have never been into a temple. Anyone who wants to visit a temple should be allowed. Everyone is equal before God.” Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said, “There can be no discrimination to worship on the basis of gender or otherwise. A welcome and progressive move towards gender equality by Supreme Court in #Sabrimala . As society evolves, so should our religious beliefs and laws.” Travancore Devaswom Board President A Padmakumar told news agency PTI that the Supreme Court's verdict will be studied in detail and further course of action will be decided after that. Padmakumar said the board had informed the court that they wanted to continue with the existing ritual practices, but now they have no other option but to implement the verdict. -- Peace Is Doable -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/greenyouth. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
