Devotees throng Shani temple on Saturday after lifting of ban

April 9, 2016

Ahmednagar, Apr 9: Men and women made a beeline to sanctum sanctorum of famous Shani temple at Shingnapur here since morning to offer prayers on the first Saturday, a day traditionally devoted to the deity, after lifting of 400-year -old ban on entry of women into the shrine's core area.

shaniThe temple trust yesterday lifted the ban following Bhoomata Brigade's agitation against gender bias and the Bombay High Court order upholding the equal rights to worship. Soon after the temple trust announced the decision, some women devotees entered the sacred area and offered worship.

Later, Bhoomata Brigade leader Trupti Desai, who had led a sustained campaign over the issue, reached the temple located in western Maharashtra and offered prayers.

A smooth access to the hitherto prohibited area of the temple brought cheer to women devotees as they poured oil on the ancient black stone idol and offered flowers to the deity on Saturday, traditionally marked by prayers to Lord Shani and Lord Hanuman whose images are jointly installed at many temples.

However, the sarpanch (headman) of Shingnapur Balsaheb Bankar said that although the decision to open all gates of the temple to all devotees was taken to honour the high court order, he personally felt that the sentiments of the villages had been "hurt" by the development.

"An age old religious tradition to protect sanctity of the temple has been broken," Bankar told PTI.

The chief trustee of the temple Anita Shete said the trustees had taken the decision to uphold the high court directive and accordingly all devotees -- men and women -- would now have free access to the inner sanctum.

Desai, who waged the battle against gender bias at places of worship, yesterday declared the trustees' decision as "victory for women" as she went to Shingnapur to have darshan of the deity along with her activists.

She also appealed to boards of Trimbakeshwar and Mahalaxmi temples in Nashik and Kolhapur respectively to follow suit and stop gender discrimination against women.

Interestingly, Priyanka Jagtap and Pushpak Kewadkar, the two activists of breakaway faction of Bhoomata Brigade, happened to be the first two women to have darshan at the sacred "chauthara" (platform), after lifting of the centuries old ban on the entry of women there.

The two who have formed "Swaraj" brigade had parted ways with Desai alleging that her agitation had become publicity oriented with full focus on herself, relegating the cause for which the Bhoomata Brigade stood.

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News Network
February 27,2020

New Delhi, Feb 27: Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Thursday attacked the government over the transfer of Delhi High Court Judge S Muralidhar, saying the Centre's attempts to "muzzle" justice and "break people's faith in an upright judiciary are deplorable".

Delhi HC Judge S Muralidhar was transferred to the Punjab and Haryana High Court, days after the Supreme Court collegium made the recommendation.

"The midnight transfer of Justice Muralidhar isn't shocking given the current dispensation, but it is certainly sad & shameful," Priyanka Gandhi tweeted. "Millions of Indians have faith in a resilient & upright judiciary, the government’s attempts to muzzle justice & break their faith are deplorable," she said.

The judge was hearing the Delhi violence case and the late evening notification came on the day when a bench headed by him expressed "anguish" over the Delhi Police's failure to register FIRs against alleged hate speeches by three BJP leaders.

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News Network
February 28,2020

Feb 28: For 30-year-old Shabana Parveen, it was nothing sort of a miracle — giving birth to a healthy baby boy after surviving a brutal attack by a mob who kicked and assaulted her and her husband in northeast Delhi's Karawal Nagar.

Their home set afire by the mob, Ms Parveen's family is now pinning their hopes on the newborn who they called a "miracle baby".

Ms Parveen, her husband, two kids and mother-in-law were sleeping inside the house on Monday night when a mob barged into their house.

Narrating their ordeal, Ms Parveen's mother-in-law Nashima told PTI, "They hurled religious slurs, beat up my son. Some of them even kicked my daughter-in-law in the abdomen...as I went to protect her they came charging at me... We thought we would not survive that night. But with God's grace we somehow managed to escape from the clutches of the rioters."

"We rushed Parveen to a nearby hospital but doctors there asked us to go to Al-hind Hospital where she delivered a baby boy on Wednesday," she added.

Despite having lost their home for over two decades and all belongings, her family has overcome the initial shock and are now overjoyed with the birth of the "miracle baby".

Ms Nashima said she had no clue where the family would go after Ms Parveen was discharged from the hospital.

"It's all gone there. Nothing left. Maybe, we will go to some relative's place and see how we can re-build our life," she said.

Ali, 6, who held his one-day-old brother, caressing his forehead, said, "I will take care of him forever and save him from every ill."

The violence over the amended citizenship law in northeast Delhi has claimed 38 lives so far and left over 200 people injured. Frenzied mobs torched houses, shops, vehicles, a petrol pump and pelted stones at locals and police personnel.

Jaffrabad, Maujpur, Babarpur, Yamuna Vihar, Bhajanpura, Chand Bagh and Shiv Vihar are among the areas mainly affected by the clashes.

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Agencies
May 31,2020

New Delhi, May 31: India registered its highest single-day spike of COVID-19 cases on Sunday with 8,380 new infections reported in the last 24 hours, taking the country's tally to 1,82,143, while the death toll rose to 5,164, according to the Union Health Ministry.

The number of active COVID-19 cases stood to 89,995, while 86,983 people have recovered and one patient has migrated, it said.

"Thus, around 47.75 per cent patients have recovered so far," a senior health ministry official said.

The total confirmed cases include foreigners.

The death toll has gone up by 193 since Saturday morning, of which 99 were from Maharashtra, 27 from Gujarat, 18 from Delhi, nine each from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, seven from West Bengal, six each from Tamil Nadu and Telangana, five in Bihar, three from Uttar Pradesh, two from Punjab, and one each from Haryana and Kerala.

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