In a sudden turnaround, the Travancore  Devaswom Board (TTD) that administers the Sabarimala temple has  decided to file a petition in the Supreme Court, seeking more time to implement its order that allows entry of women of  all ages in the temple.

“We have taken into consideration the concerns of devotees, tantris as well as the order of the Supreme Court. But we are yet to get papers related to the order. As soon as we get the papers, we shall see what can be done to file a petition to seek more time for the implementation of the order. However, a final decision on this will be taken after a meeting on Friday,” he said. The temple opens today for the third time the Supreme Court verdict, but this time for two months. There is tension all around as protestors of both sides seem ready to go to any lengths to ensure their writ runs.

The board is a government appointed body that does the bidding of the powers that be. The move is seen as a softening of the stand of the Communist Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan who convened an all party meeting to discuss the issue only to see it fail. Later, he met the family of the temple head priest and representatives of the royal family and proposed that the Board could seek more time. The state government’s earlier stand was that there was no need for the Board to approach the SC on the issue.

—India Legal Bureau