The Pandalam Palace Trust today wrote a letter to the functionaries of the Sabarimala temple asking them to shut down the temple if any ritual was broken. Three women who trekked today from the Pamba base camp, 5 km from the temple, had to return after the protesters stood their ground and did not allow them to advance.
The letter addressed to the executive and the administrative officers of the Sabarimala Devaswom, said that if anything happens at the temple against the rituals, it must be shut down.
The Supreme Court last month overturned a centuries-old practice and allowed women of menstruating age between 10 and 50 years to enter the shrine of Lord Ayyappa nestled in the Western Ghats.
In case the rituals are broken, the temple should be re-opened only after the tantri or the head priest cleanses the shrine, the letter said.
The Pandalam Royal family, who claimed to have a strong bond with Lord Ayyappa, had earlier said that if all women are allowed to enter the temple then the Lord would curse devotees with bad fortune.
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