It seems that troubles for Rehana Fathima won’t end anytime soon. A self-declared feminist, who was one of the few women who attempted to enter the Sabrimala temple, Rehana is now suspended by BSNL after she has been arrested for objectionable Facebook posts, that insulted Ayyappa devotees.
Following her arrest, Rehana, who was already transferred to a nondescription post in her agency, has now been officially suspended by the BSNL following her arrest by the Pathanamthitta police. This has been confirmed by Shri Roy Matthew, Public Relations Officer is BSNL, who added further that she will remain suspended until further investigations.
Rehana Fathima was one of the six women who was escorted by the Kerala police amid tight security towards the Sabarimala temple premises, but none of them could enter the sanctum sanctorum, thanks to the United devotees and the temple priest.
For those unaware, Rehana Fathima had posted an extremely objectionable photo of hers on Facebook on September 30, where she was half dressed as an Ayyappa devotee, and captioned the photo as ‘Tatvamasi’, in an extremely insulting reference to millions of Ayyappa devotees. Following a complaint, the Pathanamthitta police arrested her and sent her to provisional custody.
To quote a report on the same by The NewsMinute, ‘A case was registered under IPC section 295A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs).’
Rehana had applied for anticipatory bail in Kerala High Court, who rejected the plea on November 16, instructing the police to proceed in the way as they deemed necessary. Stung by such a setback, Rehana tried to gain some cheap fame by playing the victim, but in vain. To quote her insulting reference to Ayyappa devotees post her arrest, ‘ It is the so-called brahmacharis who have been so disturbed by the sight of a woman’s bare leg.’
This is not however entirely surprising though. In her attempt to enter the sanctum sanctorum, Rehana had left no stone unturned in order to show her deep hatred towards any kind of traditions. She had even carried ‘blood stained sanitary napkins’ in the irumudikettu, the two-layered cloth bundle of offerings that would be offered to the deity, a fact for she was trolled left, right and center, as shown below:-
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
Needless to say, her antics didn’t go down well with anybody in Kerala, including her own community, who expelled her for ‘hurting the sentiments of the Ayyappa devotees.’ To quote the Kerala Muslim Jamaat Council President A Punkuzhu, ‘Rehana Fathima 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, which is why she is expelled from our community.’
To be honest, this is nothing less than a fitting sentence for someone like Rehana Fathima, who attempted to defile our deities just in order to satisfy her ego and also to appease the liberal cabal. We hope that she is duly sent behind bars and peace is restored to the abode of Bhagwan Ayyappa.
