The Sabarimala shrine opened at 5 pm on Monday for the Chithira Aatta Visesham, as thousands of Lord Ayyappa devotees thronged the hill shrine for the special puja. 

The shrine will close at 10 pm on Tuesday, before opening again on November 17 for the annual Mandala Puja-Makaravilakku festival that attracts crores of pilgrims.

Under control

On Monday, the situation at the shrine as well as the main treks from the base stations was largely under control with a tight police cordon and pilgrim movement being closely monitored. The police were on alert both for potential trouble makers and women pilgrims of the restricted age, who would need escort since the Sangh Parivar has openly declared that they will not be allowed to enter the temple premises. 

Thirty-year-old Anju, who sought protection to trek to the shrine on evening, conveyed to the police after discussions that she is withdrawing the request and ready to return home.

She arrived to at the base camp of Pampa with husband and two kids and said that the latter was insisting that she carry out the pilgrimage to the hill shrine. She was willing to return if her husband allowed her.

Meanwhile, a group of devotees led by KP Sasikala of the Hindu Aikya Vedi started a protest vigil in defiance of the prohibitory order in place around Sabarimala.

Latest reports said Anju was waiting at the police control room after the husband persisted. The police is also checking the antecedents of the woman to rule out if she was an ‘activist’.

An alert was in place for ‘young activists’ who seek to take advantage of the September 27 Supreme Court’s judgment to open the temple for women of all ages. Stray attempts had led to violence during the Thulamasa Puja last month.

On Monday, at least 2,300 men in uniform had been deployed for duty, among them were 20 commandos, with express instructions issued in the morning to the Tantri (head priest) against speaking to the media. 

The police are reported to have collected complete details of devotees present at the shrine and at the base camps, besides their engagements with the social media.

‘Moles in media’

There are restrictions on how long one can hang around commercial spaces, rest houses and guest accommodations. All vehicle details are also being taken to preclude the possibility of ‘undesirable elements’ being ferried in. 

Meanwhile, State BJP President PS Sreedharan Pillai has slammed ‘moles in the media’ for revealing ‘explosive details’ of a speech he made to a gathering of the Yuva Morcha at Kozhikode and webcast live on Facebook. 

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