The Supreme Court’s verdict on Sabarimala Temple coupled with Kerala government’s arrogance and laxity opened a new can of worms. A holy, serene and peaceful place turned into a war zone because of callousness of the state government towards Bhagwan Ayyappa’s devotees.
On the very first day of opening of Sabarimala Temple, while Kerala Hindus remained determined in their protest against the SC verdict which goes against their benign beliefs, women devotees of Bhagwan Ayyappa with all tenaciousness not only chose to follow the tradition but also ensured that everybody else also do the same However some ‘activists’ including an atheist, a Christian, a Muslim and Communist, who have no devotion for Bhagwan Ayyappa and neither have any reverence for the thousand years old tradition established with the temple tried to barge into the temple. Rehana Fatima was one of them.
However, in an extremely surprising turn of events concerning Sabarimala verdict, self declared feminist and ‘Muslim atheist’ Rehana Fatima has been officially expelled from Islamic community after she was accused of trying to defile the ‘sanctum sanctorum’ of the Sabarimala temple by carrying offending items in her offerings to be deity of the Sabarimala Temple, i.e. Lord Ayyappa.
Rehana Fatima found carrying sanitary napkin in her irumudikettu at sabarimala. She was going to temple to offer napkin to Lord Aiyyappa? Oh how this hurts and angers me. How can @CMOKerala continue in his chair. Aren't you ashamed.. I curse you and your tribe with all my heart
— M (@MaliniAzif) October 19, 2018
According to the Kerala Muslim Jamaat Council President A Punkuzhu, Rehana Fatima has been found guilty of hurting Hindu sentiments by trying to defile the sanctum sanctorum of the Sabarimala Temple with her shady offerings, which allegedly included blood stained sanitary napkins.
For those unaware, the Supreme Court of India had struck down the rule of not allowing women between 10-50 years in the Sabarimala Temple campus, terming it ‘as gender discrimination’ even though the rule was applied only for a specific period. When the devotees protested against the arbitrary verdict, they were met with unimaginable brutality meted by the state police forces, who swooped down upon the hapless crowd with vengeance.
Following the ruling, journalist Kavitha S Koshy and Rehana Fatima, who is a gender rights activist, had attempted to enter the Sabarimala Temple amidst high police security, but they had to return like an unstamped envelope , as a large number of devotees, including women who are against the verdict, blocked their way, refusing to allow them to the sanctum sanctorum.
The council said that with such acts, Rehana has no rights to adopt a Muslim name or traditions, and has also recommended to the Ernakulam Central Muslim Jamaat to excommunicate her as well as her family.
To be honest, though surprising, this is a rather welcome decision from the Muslim community. The reason for expelling Rehana from their community is another welcome surprise.
Besides, this decision also serves as a strong deterrent to the so called feminists and political opportunists, who have taken it upon themselves to defame and shame the Hindu community. They are extremely aghast on the united opposition that is successfully stalling all their efforts to raid the temple premises and ‘defile’ the sanctum sanctorum just to serve their malicious agenda. In this light, the decision by the mentioned community sends a clear message : Traditions cannot be mocked for the heck of it.
With Rehana Fatima unable to enter the temple premises as well as being expelled from her own community, its double trouble for Rehana Fatima now. Let’s see how long can these so called liberals sustain, for the fight to save Sabarimala is now turning interesting.