Sabarimala Temple Not To Allow Devotees This Month

Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala Devaswom Minister K. Surendran told the media on Thursday that the Sabarimala temple would not be open to the public this month. He added that a decision to this effect was taken after a meeting with the temple chief priest. The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) which oversees the functioning of the Sabarimala temple had earlier in the day, taken a decision not to allow devotees and had decided to skip the annual temple festival following reservations expressed by the temple Tantri or chief priest.

Devaswom Board members are also said to have been of the view that since the festival is attended in large numbers by devotees from neighbouring states in the south such as Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, it would be difficult to check the transmission of coronavirus at that time. However, all the regular pujas will be held at the Sabarimala shrine as per tradition.

The decision of the CPM led government in Kerala to keep the Sabarimala temple shut comes in the wake of sharp criticism from the BJP for allowing temples under the state funded Devaswom Board to open for devotees. Union Minister of State for external affairs and senior BJP leader from Kerala V Muraleedharan slammed the move to open temples to devotees when COVID-19 cases are showing an upward trend. He also accused the Pinarayi Vijayan government of pushing ahead with the decision not keeping the religious sentiments of the devotees, but with an eye on the money offered at the temples by them.

BJP state president K Surendran also wondered why the government was keen on opening Hindu temples to devotees when churches and mosques still remained shut. The BJP leader accused the minister of eyeing the money offered by devotees in temples.

Five Devaswoms control 3,000 temples in Kerala.