Two women who entered Sabarimala move top court seeking police security, plea to be heard on Friday

Kanaka Durga and Bindu Ammini, the women from Kerala who had entered the Sabarimala Temple earlier in January, have approached the Supreme Court seeking police protection. The Supreme Court will hear their pleas on Friday. Kanaka Durga was also allegedly assaulted by her mother-in-law for defying tradition by entering the Lord Ayyappa shrine. Kanakadurga had been in hiding for the last two weeks after the darshan at the Sabarimala shrine due to security reasons. When she reached home in Perinthalmanna on Tuesday morning, she had a verbal duel with her in-laws who opposed her entry at the temple. Kanakadurga alleged that her mother-in-law allegedly beat her up with a wooden plank and she was taken to the hospital.

Kanakadurga suffered head injuries and is admitted to a government hospital at Perinthalmanna in northern Malappuram district, the police said. "My mother-in-law beat me up severely with the wooden plank," Kanakadurga told TV channels from the hospital.

Reports also suggest her mother-in-law also got admitted to the hospital later alleging that Kanakadurga had assaulted her. Both Kanakadurga's in-laws and her own family had opposed her decision to enter the Sabarimala temple taken in view of the landmark September 28 Supreme Court verdict permitting women of all age groups into the shrine.

Kanakadurga and Bindu, 42, had entered the hill shrine on January 3, breaking a centuries-old tradition and defying dire threats from right-wing groups.

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As the news spread like wildfire from the hill shrine, protests erupted at several places, with Hindu right-wing activists blocking highways and forcing closure of shops and markets. The violence rocked parts of the state during the January 3 hartal with several houses and shops of rival leaders and workers being attacked over the women's entry into the temple.

BJP and CPI(M) workers clashed in front of the Secretariat for over five hours as police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse them. A 55-year-old man, who was seriously injured in stone throwing at Pandalam, died later. Various universities, including Kerala, Mahatma Gandhi, Calicut and Kannur postponed their examinations.

(With PTI inputs)