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Sabarimala turns police fortress as Ayyappa temple is set to reopen

Agencies
November 5, 2018

Sabarimala, Nov 5: Hundreds of police personnel, armed commandos, surveillance cameras and mobile jammers have turned Sabarimala, the abode of Lord Ayyappa in the southern Indian state of Kerala, into a virtual fortress, hours before it opens Monday evening for a special puja

The unprecedented security arrangements have been made in the backdrop of protests by devotees and Hindu outfits from October 17-22 opposing the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government's decision to implement the landmark Supreme Court verdict permitting women of all age groups to offer prayers at the hill shrine

However, the security arrangements have not gone down well with the devotees and right wing activists who protested at several places against the restrictions at Sabarimala, considered the sacred grove of Lord Ayyappa, a celibate

The temple would open on Monday for the "Sree Chitira Atta Thirunal" puja slated for Tuesday, marking the birthday of the last king of the Indian princely state of Travancore, Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma, and close after that

The government and police machinery is on high alert to avoid any untoward incidents in and around the shrine, where ban orders are in force till Tuesday night

Pathnamthitta Superintendent of Police T Narayanan had Sunday told PTI that all arrangements have been made for devotees to ensure smooth 'darshan'

Around 2,300 personnel, including a 20-member commando team and 100 women, have been deployed for the security of the devotees

At least 15 women police personnel, who are over 50 years of age, have been deployed at the 'Sannidhanam' (temple complex), police said

TV footage showed devotees locked in a war of words with police at several places along the route from Nilackal to Pamba, the key base camps on way to the shrine

Besides being unsettled by the intense checking by the police, the pilgrims also complained about the lack of amenities at the base camps, which had witnessed widespread damage during the August deluge

A group of devotees, who arrived at Erumeli since Sunday evening, protested this morning when they were not allowed to leave for Pamba. They blocked road traffic chanting 'Ayyappa Saranam' mantra. 

Another batch of devotees complained that women police personnel asked their names and identity cards while travelling to Pamba in a state-run bus

"They stopped the bus and asked our names and demanded that we show the identity cards. I said my name is Ayyappa... everyone in our group said the same (as the Ayyappa devotees are called)

"In Sabarimala, everyone is Ayyappa... devotees call each other as swamy," a devotee, carrying the sacred 'irumudikettu' (offerings to Lord Ayyappa) on his head, told a TV channel

Another young devotee said he was not allowed to chant 'Swamiye Saranam Ayyappa' by the security officials

Several devotees could be seen walking to Pamba after waiting for the Kerala State Transport buses at Nilackal

Around 500 devotees, who reached Pamba after walking for several hours, blocked road traffic en-route in protest

Media personnel were also not allowed to leave Nilackal for Pamba, the last entry point, and 'Sannidhanam' in the morning but the restriction was lifted later

Some women journalists proceeded to Pamba with police escort

Hindu outfits, agitating against entry of women of menstrual age into Sabariamala, Sunday had urged media houses not to depute women journalists under 50 to cover the issue

A series of surveillance cameras have been installed at several points in an around the temple complex

Local TV channels reported that mobile jammers have been installed in front of the room of 'tantri' (head priest), Kadararu Rajeevaru at the temple complex and some other places

They also said police have restrained the priest from speaking to media

Police have already prepared a registry of right wing activists who are likely to reach the shrine to take part in the agitation against the entry of young women

The Bharatiya Janata Party and various Hindu outfits are on a warpath against the Left-front government over its decision not to seek a review of the top court verdict lifting the ban on entry of women in 10-50 age group

So far, 3,731 people have been arrested and 545 cases registered in connection with last month's protests and violence

Around a dozen women in the age group of 10-50 were prevented from reaching the temple and police and the agitators fought a pitched battle last month over the LDF government's decision to implement the court order.

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Agencies
June 4,2020

New Delhi, Jun 4: CSIR Director-General Shekhar Mande said on Thursday that the World Health Organisation's (WHO) decision to halt hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) drug trial was taken in haste and the global body should have actually analysed the data before making the decision.

"I firmly believe that WHO decision was taken in haste it was a kind of knee jerk reaction they should have actually analyse the data on their own before temporarily suspend the trials that is my personal opinion," Mande said.

India's nodal government agency ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research) overseeing the country's response to the coronavirus pandemic last month wrote to the WHO citing differences in dosage standards between Indian and international trials that could explain the efficacy issues of HCQ in treating COVID-19 patients.

In addition, Dr Sheela Godbole, National Coordinator of the WHO-India Solidarity Trial and Head of the Division of Epidemiology, ICMR-National AIDS Research Institute also wrote a letter via an email to Dr Soumya Swaminathan, Chief Scientist at World Health Organisation.

In a letter, Dr Godbole stated: "There was no reason to suspend the trial for safety concern," attributing it to the current RECOVERY data which differs significantly from the non-randomised assessment by Mehra et al, a scientific paper.

Referring to the letter, the CSIR head said, "We don't know what actually happened behind the scenes but the hypothesis is that because of the paper published in Lancet. It is a very well known journal and if Lancet has done due vigilance in publishing the paper. 

Therefore, the WHO thought the paper's findings are right that's why WHO hold based on what is published on Lancet. The WHO shouldn't have accepted it immediately this should have taken their own due vigilance to find out that study is right or not."

DG CSIR said because there is a global outcry it must have put pressure on both Lancet as well as WHO and both of them now retracted from their original position. "WHO has started a trial again and Lancet has put an expression of concern on their website both of these are very welcome development for science," he said.

"So I am pretty sure that Lancet would have published the reports only after seeing somewhere the drug failed to work," Mande said.

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News Network
April 5,2020

Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 5: Eight more COVID-19 positive cases were reported from Kerala on Sunday, four among whom attended the Tablighi Jamat congregation in Delhi and six people were cured, Health Minister K K Shailaja said.

With this, the total number of affected people under treatment in the state has gone up to 256, she said.

"Out of the eight cases, five are from Kozhikode, and one each from Pathanamthitta, Kannur and Kasaragod districts.

In the case of Kozhikode, four out of the five returned from Nizammuddin meet and one from Dubai.

As of date, 10 people who had returned from Nizammuddin in Delhi have been tested positive," the minister said in a release

A total of 314 cases have been reported from Kerala so far and 56 people have been cured, she said

"We have sent 10,221 samples for testing," she said.

A total of 1.58 lakh people are under observation in the state, out of which 776 are in isolation wards in hospitals.

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Agencies
July 30,2020

Kochi, Jul 30: The Kerala High Court on Thursday refused to grant the extension for the stay of a 74-year-old US citizen, Johnny Paul Pierce, who had earlier said that he felt safer to remain in India than in the United States amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The single-judge bench of Justice CS Dias, which considered the writ petition, observed that the grant or extension of visa to foreign nationals fall exclusively within the domain of the Government of India (GoI) and that judicial review in such matters is minimal.

The power of the GoI to expel foreigners is absolute and unlimited, the bench said.

"In view of the categoric declaration of law by the Supreme Court, the plea of the petitioner to permit him to stay back in India cannot be accepted, as it falls within the purview of the guidelines and the discretion of the Government of India," the order said.

"The petitioner cannot be heard that the guidelines/policies/regulations formulated by the Government of India, that an American national though has been granted a visa having validity of five years has to leave India within 180 days, is irrational or unreasonable," it added.

The High Court, which was hearing a plea to permit the US citizen to stay in India for a further period of six months, said that the petitioner does not have a case that there is an infraction of Article 21 of the Constitution of India.

"The petitioner was well aware of the visa conditions when he arrived in India, and it is too late in the day for him to raise a grievance on the visa conditions," the bench said noting that the petitioner's love for India was heartening.

The High Court also directed the Foreigners Registration Officer to consider the petitioner's representation within a period of two weeks in accordance with the applicable guidelines and policies.

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