Indian women seek police protection after entering Hindu temple

By AFP
January 18, 2019

NEW DELHI: Two women who enraged conservatives by entering one of Hinduism’s holiest temples have asked India’s highest court for round-the-clock police protection, saying their lives are in danger.

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Hindu devotees went on a violent rampage after Bindu Ammini and Kanakadurga entered Sabarimala in January -- a hilltop shrine in southern Kerala state that for centuries was off-limits to nearly all women.

The Supreme Court in September overturned a ban on women of menstruating age from praying at Sabarimala but temple devotees refused to accept the ruling and prevented female worshippers from entering. News that Ammini and Kanakadurga reached the shrine triggered days of violent protest, with one person killed and dozens injured in clashes with police that saw buses torched and bombs hurled. The women’s lawyer, Indira Jaising, told the country’s top court on Thursday that the pair needed state protection as their welfare is in jeopardy. Kanakadurga, who goes by one name, was allegedly attacked by her mother-in-law on Tuesday after returning home and was admitted to hospital for her injuries.

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