In SC, Travancore Devaswom Board To Oppose Women’s Entry In Sabarimala Temple

Thiruvananthapuram, March 3: The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) has decided to oppose the entry of women of menstruating age into the Sabarimala Temple. The board will inform the Supreme Court that it now supports protecting traditional customs at the temple.

TDB President K Jayakumar announced the decision at a press conference on Monday. He said the board would file a fresh affidavit before the Supreme Court on March 14, as directed by the court. The matter will be heard by a nine-judge Constitution Bench, which has asked all concerned parties to state their positions clearly.

According to Jayakumar, the board now believes that the entry of young women should be restricted in keeping with long-standing temple traditions. He added that any final decision on temple rituals should be taken only after detailed consultations with the temple’s traditional head priests and the devotee community.

This marks a sharp departure from the board’s earlier position. In 2018 and 2019, after the Supreme Court allowed women of all age groups to enter Sabrimala, the TDB filed an affidavit supporting the verdict. That decision led to widespread protests across Kerala and became a major political issue.

Earlier, affidavits filed during the V S Achuthanandan government in 2007 and the first Pinarayi Vijayan government in 2017 had attempted to strike a balance between fundamental rights and religious customs. However, after internal discussions, the board has now taken a firm stand in favour of safeguarding tradition.

Though the Kerala government is not required to submit a separate affidavit, the TDB’s new position is widely seen as politically significant. Minister V N Vasavan and Saji Vherian had recently indicated that matters of faith should be protected. Former RDB President P S Prasanth had also voiced similar views in the past.

Political observers believe the move is a strategic decision ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections. The ruling CPI(M) had faced a setback in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, partly due to backlash over the Sabrimala issue. Following that defeat, the party leadership under late secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan launched outreach efforts to regain the support of believers.

For now, authorities have not facilitated further entry of women, even though there is no formal stay on the original Supreme Court verdict, and are awaiting final review.