Sabarimala Purification Row: CJI Declines Early Hearing Of Contempt Action Against Chief Priest Of Temple

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According to petitioner “purification ritual” and the closing down of temple amounted to violation of SC verdict. Stating that the holding of “purification ritual” after the entry of two women in Sabarimala temple amounted to practise of untouchability, contempt action has been sought against the Chief Priest of the temple. The petition was mentioned before the Supreme Court today.

However, the CJI turned down the request for urgent consideration of the matter. “We cannot constitute separate bench for contempt petition”, the CJI remarked in response to the oral mentioning. The SC is set to hear in open court on January 22 the review petitions filed against the September 28 verdict in the Indian Young Lawyers Association case,which declared right of women of all age groups to enter the temple.

Two women, Bindu & Kanakadurga, both aged below 50 years, had visited the temple and offered prayers yesterday early morning around 3.30 AM. After that, the Chief Priest Kandararu Rajeevaru shut down the temple around 10.30 AM for “purification” rituals, on the ground that women entry had resulted in the defiling of the deity.

According to Varsha, the petitioner who has filed the contempt petition, this ritual and the closing down of temple amounted to violation of the SC verdict. The petitioner pointed out that the SC had held exclusion of women on the notion of menstrual impurity to be a form of “untouchability”, which is prohibited under Article 17 of the Constitution of India.

The petitioner made specific reference to the observations of Justice Chandrachud in the judgment that “To use the ideology of “purity and pollution” is a violation of the constitutional right against “untouchability”.

The contempt petition was originally filed in November 16, against the Chief Priest and P Ramavarma Raja, representative of the erstwhile Pandalam royal family.

The petition alleged that the conduct of Ramavarma in writing a letter to the Chief Priest urging him to close the temple in the event of women entry amounted to “scandalising and lowering the authority of the Court”.

Initially a petition seeking the sanction of Attorney General for initiating criminal contempt was filed. The AG withdrew himself from considering the matter. Later, the matter was considered by Solicitor General Thushar Mehta, who declined sanction.

After that, the petition was filed in the Supreme Court under Article 129 of the Constitution of India. In the wake of yesterday’s events, an additional affidavit was filed in the contempt petition, which was mentioned today before the bench of CJI.