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<ul><li>The <keyword id="6354977" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Supreme-Court">Supreme Court</keyword> is reviewing the entry of women of all ages into the temple.</li><li>The Supreme Court today moved the matter to a seven member bench, from the current five bench judgement.</li><li>Before the last SC verdict women of menstruating age were not allowed to enter the temple because the deity is believed to celibate. </li></ul>The controversial <keyword id="498405" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sabarimala-case">Sabarimala case</keyword> shows no signs of dying down. The Supreme Court today moved the matter to a seven member bench, from the current five bench judgment. The petitions that were filed to review its earlier judgment are kept pending. The Court needs time to review the matter, said a lawyer who was speaking outside the Supreme Court. 
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 The top court is reviewing the entry of women of all ages into the temple. Before the last SC verdict women of menstruating age were not allowed to enter the temple because the deity is believed to celibate. Today's appeal is expected to settle the debate once and for all. The Supreme Court with a 5-judge bench led by <keyword id="548459" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Chief-Justice-Ranjan-Gogoi">Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi</keyword> was reviewing 64 petitions which had challenged its earlier verdict. Last year, in a landmark judgment, the Supreme Court had allowed menstruating women between the age group of 10-50 to enter the temple. The earlier verdict was passed by a 5-judge bench which included the then Chief Justice Dipak Misra, and Justices A. M. Khanwilkar, R. F. Nariman, Indu Malhotra and D. Y. Chandrachud. It wasn’t a unanimous judgment with the only woman on the panel Justice Indu Malhotra opposing the decision where she had said that the rational arguments cannot be applied to matters of religion and that religious practices are more complex than the right to equality. Then, the body which manages the <keyword id="453325" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="sabarimala-temple">Sabarimala temple</keyword> – the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) and the custodians of the temple, the Pandalam royal family had expressed its disappointment with the verdict. Since then, the temple has seen multiple protests from both sides of the party – the temple authorities have challenged the court’s verdict, while women have on different occasions <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/two-women-below-50-enter-keralas-sabarimala-temple-police-sources-1971204">sneaked into</a> the temple and were escorted by cops. The Mandala season is here From Wednesday, the security at Sabarimala temple, which opens its doors on Sunday for devotees for the two-month long festival, has been tightened before the verdict. According to IANS, the police have classified the two month long season ⁠— from November to January ⁠— into four segments with the first two weeks starting on November 15 to November 29 and in all 2,551 police personnel would be posted in and around the temple complex.

Supreme Court moves Sabarimala case to a 7-judge bench

<ul><li>Thousands of women came together to form a human chain and stand up against the patriarchal traditions of the <keyword id="453325" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="sabarimala-temple">Sabarimala Temple</keyword> in the southern Indian state of Kerala. </li><li>The 620 km ‘Women’s Wall’ pledged to uphold ‘Renaissance values’ and to ‘stand for the equality of women’. </li><li>The chief minister of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan and the state’s health minister, KK Shylaja, were also a part of the peaceful protest. </li><li>The event is being dubbed a historic moment for feminist politics, not just in the state, but in India.</li></ul>Not just the general public, but politicians and celebrities alike, rallied together as the New Year began on January 1 to <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.in/entry/womens-wall-in-kerala-vanitha-mathil_in_5c2b47d8e4b0407e90858ba2">stand up against</a> the patriarchal norms of <keyword id="6384180" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="sabarimala">Sabarimala</keyword> temple, where women of all ages were recently allowed to enter as per the Indian Supreme Court’s <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/supreme-court-of-india-lifts-ban-women-of-all-ages-can-now-enter-sabarimala-temple/articleshow/65993339.cms">judgement</a>. The ‘Women’s Wall’ stretched across 620 kilometers, which is thrice the length of Singapore’s coastline, passing through all the districts of Kerala — a southern Indian state and the location of Sabarimala Temple. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 The 15-minute event is being perceived as a ‘defining’ movement for feminist politics in the country where progressive Hindu organisations also came to give their support. The men also formed a wall parallel to the ‘Women’s Wall’ to show their solidarity towards gender equality and women’s rights. The participants of the ‘Women’s Wall’ made a pledge at the event which read, “We are taking the pledge that we will uphold Renaissance values, we will stand for equality for women, we resist the attempts to make Kerala a lunatic asylum, and we will fight for secularism.” 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 The peaceful protest was organised by the ruling party, CPI(M) and included members from more than 176 other socio-political organisations. The resistance Even when the Sabarimala Temple was originally deemed <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/protestors-flock-as-this-indian-temple-finally-opens-its-gate-to-women/articleshow/66257966.cms">open to women of all ages</a>, protestors flocked to its gate in resistance. The original ‘traditions’ dictate that women between the ages of 10 to 50 years are barred from praying at Lord Ayyappa's shrine. Since October, the local tribal community, devotees and local organisations have wreaked havoc by not allowing women of childbearing age to get past the temple’s gates. Any women who have tried to ream past the mob in order to enter the temple has either had to turn back due to fatigue from fighting off the protestors, has been cut off from the gates from being outnumbered, or had stones thrown to keep them from progressing. The local police have been trying to aid the women trying to trek up to the temple, sometimes even in riot gear, but hasn’t had much luck. According to the state’s chief minister, Pinarayi Vijayan, two women did break through the gates and <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/sabarimala-temple-live-updates-shrine-shut-for-purification-after-2-women-enter-1971269">prayed at the temple</a> — but immediately after, priests shut down the hill shrine to perform ‘purification rituals’. India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, appears to have taken the side of the conservative protestors. In an <a href="https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/pm-modi-ani-interview-triple-talaq-sabarimala-issue-smita-prakash-1421336-2019-01-01">interview</a> with ANI, he pointed to the fact that certain temples do not allow the entry of men, though he did not cite any specific examples. His political party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), has previously spoken out against the Supreme Court’s decision in favouring women’s equality. Even Amit Shah, the current spokesperson for BJP, has come out to <a href="https://twitter.com/AmitShah/status/1056133606186409990?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1056133606186409990&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cnn.com%2F2019%2F01%2F01%2Fasia%2Findia-kerala-chain-intl%2Findex.html">state</a> that the fight in Kerala is one between the ‘people of faith’ and an ‘oppressive’ state government. Here are some pictures from the one of the largest human chains in the world- 
	
	
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‘Women’s Wall’ thrice the length of Singapore’s coastline is standing up against patriarchy in India

The controversy over the breaking of the <keyword id="6384180" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="sabarimala">Sabarimala</keyword> <keyword id="6355287" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Temple">temple</keyword>'s culture and tradition continues to rage and is even now the most discussed election issue in Kerala as seen from the statements of various top political leaders, who came to cast their votes on Tuesday. The <keyword id="6930180" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sabarimala-temple-issue">Sabarimala temple issue</keyword> was raised by Sukumaran Nair, general secretary of the powerful Hindu Nair community's social and cultural organisation -- <keyword id="378621" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Nair-Service-Society">Nair Service Society</keyword>. Soon after casting his vote at Changnacherry in Kottayam district, Nair said what he could sense is that the people in the state want a change in governance and want an outfit which will uphold social justice and secular credentials. "The Sabarimala temple issue continues to rage as believers are angry," said Nair. It was in 2018 that the apex court ruled that the temple should be open to all women irrespective of the age group as until then the temple tradition was that no women in the age group 10 to 50 be allowed entry. Following the verdict, the Vijayan-led government floated a renaissance movement, much to the anguish of the believers of Lord Ayyappa, the deity at the Sabarimala temple, and even went to the extent of providing security to two activist women to pray at the temple by providing <keyword id="6369752" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Police-Security">police security</keyword>. The temple town then became a battle ground after believers in large members resisted attempts by the police to take women in the hitherto banned age group. This temple issue came as a setback for Vijayan in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls when he won only one of the 20 Lok Sabha seats in Kerala. On Tuesday, after casting his vote at Kannur, Vijayan when asked about Nair's Sabarimala temple issue said, "it's not just Ayyappan alone, all God's are supporting the Left," said Vijayan, who was accompanied by his wife Kamala Vijayan. And then came statements from the Congress leaders who condemned this sudden U-turn by Vijayan. Reacting to Vijayan's sudden love for Lord Ayyappan, Chennithala laughed and said it was strange to hear an atheist's sudden love for Ayyappan. "Vijayan will get the wrath of Ayyappan as he destroyed the sanctity of the famed Sabarimala temple," said Chennithala. Two time former Congress Chief Minister <keyword id="137100" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Oommen-Chandy">Oommen Chandy</keyword> said Vijayan's statement will be taken with a pinch of salt by the people as it has no sum or substance. "The first thing he did was to file a fresh affidavit and it was done after withdrawing our affidavit, and it was clear that he was against the existing traditions of the temple. When the apex court verdict came, he said he will abide by the verdict. Soon he led a renaissance movement and when no women came to visit the temple, police forcefully took two women to the temple and the culture and traditions were broken. And on election day Vijayan has made a huge U-turn and this would be dismissed by every devotee as nothing but a bluff," said Chandy and added the Congress-led <keyword id="6361745" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="udf">UDF</keyword> will win a resounding victory. Union Minister of State for External Affairs V.Muraleedharan laughed at the statement of Vijayan and said it's high time that the CPI-M be wound up as their ideology has been thrown out of the window. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/restaurants-in-maharashtra-are-staring-at-a-slow-death-as-another-lockdown-threatens-to-kill-their-business/articleshow/81924727.cms">Maharashtra restaurant owners fear the current lockdown could be the final nail in the coffin for their business</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/earth-isnt-the-only-planet-with-rain-and-it-could-be-the-key-to-finding-a-habitable-planet-outside-the-solar-system/articleshow/81926108.cms">Raindrops on other planets could be key in search for life beyond the solar system</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/tcs-hcl-tech-infosys-q4-earnings-preview-and-guidance/articleshow/81908765.cms">Record breaking quarter for Indian IT services is a given ⁠— all eyes are now on guidance</a>

Sabarimala temple continues to be an election issue in Kerala

<ul><li>The Supreme Court’s verdict to allow women of all ages to enter the <keyword id="453325" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="sabarimala-temple">Sabarimala Temple</keyword> came into effect today.</li><li>During the past week, protestors and the local tribal community have flocked to the shrine in order to protest the verdict and prevent women from entering. </li><li>While the law was passed to propagate equality, the locals cite that it’s encroaching their <keyword id="63214" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="religious-freedom">religious freedom</keyword>.</li></ul>The Sabarimala temple finally opened its doors to women today but they’re are being <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/two-women-devotees-reach-sabarimala-temple-sent-back-by-protesters-1933319" data-type="tilCustomLink" style="">turned around</a> before they can even reach the gates. The verdict passed by the Supreme Court last month allowed women of all ages to worship Lord Ayyappa's shrine citing Article 14, that everyone should be equal before the law. But the matter at hand seems to be pivoting from equality between genders to religious freedoms and tribal rights. On the ground, the local tribal community along with their supporters have been gathering to protest. So far, women have been turned out at the base of the hill where the temple is located and stones have been pelted at cars approaching with women on board. Even the women police that’s been deployed in the area are facing backlash for doing their duty. What seems to be the problem? The Sabarimala temple is the pivotal place of worship for the tribal community living in the Attathodu area where the shrine is located. According to the chief of the tribal community in the region, VK Narayanan, the issue is that the restrictions that have been placed on women of a certain age as a part of their customs. He added that considering menstruating women ‘impure’ is a Dravidian custom. Even before Wednesday, many organisations were citing disruption and ‘mass suicides’ as a likely outcome if women of menstrual age are allowed to enter the shrine. This isn’t the first time that India has had to face a crisis of conscience where the choice is between bringing about equality or upholding tradition. Triple Talaq, up until recently, was legal in India. Having been cited as ‘unconstitutional’ it was abolished in 2017 highlighting that such a tradition was not integral to religious practice. (Image source: IANS)

Protestors flock as this Indian temple finally opens its gate to women

<keyword id="7160701" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="the-year-2018">The year 2018</keyword> saw the <keyword id="75952" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Supreme-Court-of-India">Supreme Court of India</keyword> pass some pivotal judgements that have borne in favour of equality. Under the umbrella of Justice Dipak Misra, the judgements have sparked debate, joy and also anger. The Supreme Court verdict on decriminalising homosexuality allowing the entry of women in the Sabarimala temple in the year 2018, while appreciated, were also judgements that were widely debated. The controversy surrounding the Aadhaar Act was also put to rest with Sections 33(2), 47 and 57 being struck down. The primary concern of citizens was abated with private entities no longer being allowed to demand Aadhaar data and the national security exception being revoked. Here are the some of the major verdicts passed down by the <keyword id="7160700" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="supreme-court-in-the-year-2018">Supreme Court in the year 2018</keyword>:

10 landmark judgements India’s Supreme Court passed in 2018

<ul><li>The 5-judge constitutional bench headed by Chief Justice <keyword id="6355251" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="dipak-misra">Dipak Misra</keyword> ruled that women can now enter <keyword id="28504" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Kerala">Kerala</keyword>’s <keyword id="6384180" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="sabarimala">Sabarimala</keyword> temple, irrespective of their age.</li><li>The verdict stated that the tradition violated the right of Hindu women to practice their religion.</li><li>The bench also said, the Kerala Hindu Places of Public Worship (Authorisation of Entry) Rules, 1965 put patriarchy in religion above the right to pray, which is stated in Article 25 of the Indian constitution. </li></ul>In another landmark verdict this week, the <keyword id="75952" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Supreme-Court-of-India">Supreme Court of India</keyword> ended the centuries-old tradition of women not being able to enter Kerala’s most well-known temple, the Sabarimala temple, if they were between the ages of 10 to 50. Petitioners had challenged the Kerala High Court’s decision that only the tantri or priest had the power to decide on traditions. The <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/india/sabarimala-verdict-live-updates-supreme-court-women-temples-kerala-5377598/?#liveblogstart">five-judge Constitutional bench</a> that included Chief Justice Dipak Misra, R F Nariman, A M Khanwilkar, D Y Chandrachud and <keyword id="854247" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indu-Malhotra">Indu Malhotra</keyword>, ruled that the tradition enforced patriarchy in religion and could not be allowed to trump women’s right to pray. Not a unanimous decision Justice Indu Malhotra was the only judge on the bend to vote against the petition. She stated that rational arguments cannot be applied to matters of religion and that religious practices are more complex than the right to equality. She added that Article 25 of the Indian constitution already protects the Sabarimala shrine and its deity. While Article 14 stresses the right of all individuals to be equal in the eye of the law, constitutional morality also accounts for everyone being allowed to practise their beliefs. Even if those beliefs are biased towards one gender. That being said, Justice Nariman expressed that the rule actually violates Article 25 by not extending the freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion to women. The management of the Sabarimala temple, the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) has already announced that they will be filing to review the petition. The president of TDB, A Padmakumar, stated that he would be enlisting the help of other religious heads to push this forward. The custodians of the temple, the Pandalam royal family, also expressed their disappointment in the verdict.

Supreme Court of India lifts ban, women of all ages can now enter Sabarimala temple

<ul><li>“Essential” religious practices will be termed as “unconstitutional” if they discriminate on grounds of <keyword id="6360838" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="caste">caste</keyword> or sex, the SC said. </li><li>The apex court evoked the fundamental right to equality and Article 25(2) to give this verdict in the <keyword id="75061" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sabarimala-Ayyappa-temple">Sabarimala Ayyappa temple</keyword> case. </li><li>The temple did not let women between the age of 10 to 50 years, enter its premises. However, SC said that it was unconstitutional. </li></ul>The Supreme Court has recently given the <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/essential-religious-practices-if-biased-can-be-struck-down-supreme-court/articleshow/65141215.cms">judgement </a>that “essential and integral” religious practices can be struck down if they are biased. The apex court said that practices were “unconstitutional” if they discriminated on grounds of caste or sex and that the fundamental rights would be upheld against them. Thus verdict was announced when the SC was hearing petitions challenging the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple’s custom of barring women, between the ages of 10 and 50, from entering the temple. A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra, called upon <keyword id="2598255" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Article-15">Article 15</keyword>, which establishes the Fundamental right to equality, and <keyword id="4535312" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="article-25">Article 25</keyword> (2), which bestows a duty on constitutional courts and governments to act against any religious practice that is discriminatory towards women. The senior advocate and former attorney general K Parasaran, who was the lawyer appearing in the court on behalf of the <keyword id="378621" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Nair-Service-Society">Nair Service Society</keyword>, an organisation created for the upliftment and welfare of the Nair community, argued that the temple does not discriminate against women, entirely. It lets women below the age of 10 years and above the age of 50 years enter the temple. He further added that Lord Ayyappa, in whose honour the temple was built, is a celibate pristine God and therefore, fertile or menstruating women are not allowed to enter the premises. The argument caused a halt in the bench’s desire to test the temple’ customs in terms of the constitutional provisions. However, the court soon decided to reply by quoting Article 25 (2) which says that legislature can enact a law to provide for "social welfare and reforms or throwing open of Hindu religious institutions of a public character to all classes and sections of Hindus". The judges also added that this article applies to all religious institutions and not just Hindus. Though Parasaran acknowledged it, he also argued that the Constitution preserves the Fundamental Right that protects the practices and customs which are integral to a religious denomination. In response, the judges pointed out that if the practice or custom is biased, like barring a certain group from entering the temple, the legislature is empowered by the Constitution, itself, to enact a law and throw open the temple to everyone. And since, untouchability and discrimination on the ground of sex are prohibited under the Constitution, the Sabarimala Temple custom of barring the entry of women of a certain age group could also fall foul of constitutional ethos or could be termed unconstitutional, the jury declared.

Essential and integral religious practices can be overruled if they are biased: SC

<ul><li>The Supreme Court of <keyword id="3658" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="India">India</keyword> lifted the ban imposed on setting up a dance bar in <keyword id="13126" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Maharashtra">Maharashtra</keyword> today. </li><li>It also ruled against other proposed restrictions like the installation of cameras inside the bar. </li><li>The decision came in when a petition challenged the strict norms levied by state government that made it almost impossible to set up and run a dance bar in Maharashtra. </li></ul>The ban on <keyword id="94250" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Dance-bars">dance bars</keyword> in India’s financial capital has been lifted by the country’s Supreme Court. The government of Maharashtra can regulate these bars but cannot fully prohibit them, the court said in its verdict. The court ruling also overturned installation of cameras inside the bars as it invades privacy. The Supreme Court has also removed the mandatory condition of dance bars to be one kilometer away from religious places or school citing it ‘unreasonable’ for <keyword id="6358070" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="mumbai">Mumbai</keyword>. In 2018, some of the dance bars in Maharashtra that were already carrying out business were exempted from certain clauses of the new law imposed by the state government.The top court said the laws were ‘weird and ridiculous’. Mumbai has a long history of ‘dance bars’ — bars that had women entertaining guests with private or group dancing in exchange for tips. However, these were banned in 2005 by the state government, mostly on moral grounds, but was later struck down by the Bombay High Court in 2013. However, the then Congress government brought an ordinance to implement the ban. Today’s verdict from the SC allows aspiring dance bar operators to procure a licence from the state government and operate under stricter regulations. While the government took a <a href="https://www.livelaw.in/top-stories/maharashtra-dance-bar-sc-142189">moral high ground</a> on the debate over dance bars, a union of the dancers, called the 'Bharatiya Bargirls Union’ complained that the ban was not amoral or hurting their dignity, it only took away a source of livelihood. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/miscellaneous/10-landmark-judgements-indias-supreme-court-passed-in-2018/slidelist/67254190.cms">10 landmark judgements India’s Supreme Court passed in 2018</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/all-you-need-to-know-about-the-landmark-supreme-court-verdict-on-reservation-quotas-for-job-promotions/articleshow/65981169.cms">All you need to know about the landmark Supreme Court verdict on reservation quotas for job promotions</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/supreme-court-of-india-lifts-ban-women-of-all-ages-can-now-enter-sabarimala-temple/articleshow/65993339.cms">Supreme Court of India lifts ban, women of all ages can now enter Sabarimala temple</a>

Mumbai can have dance bars again but conditions apply

<ul><li>Intense violence has tainted Kerala' politics in recent years.</li><li>Simmering tensions between the UDF, LDF, and the BJP may affect voter turnout.</li><li>If people decide to avoid voting to stay safe, it may skew the results.</li></ul>The southern state of Kerala, famous for its scenic backwaters and high literacy rate, has seen one of the most violent election campaigns in the country. If people decide to sit at home to avoid getting caught in any sort of violence, it may skew the results in favour of one party or the other. <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/elections/lok-sabha-elections-2019/kerala/news/violent-end-to-vibrant-poll-campaign/articleshow/68987461.cms">More than 30 people</a>, including a policeman, were injured at Thiruvalla where the activists of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Left Democratic Front (LDF) clashed on the last day of the campaign (April 21). That was only one of the many violent clashes that have caught headlines in the state that boasts of 94% literacy, according to the 2011 census. Sitaram Yechury, the general secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), better known by its acronym CPI(M), said that the party had 13 workers in the last one year. However, police <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/kerala-news/kerala-rss-workers-murder-data-reveals-record-of-political-killings-1733728">records verified by NDTV</a> showed that 14 people from the RSS, BJP, and the left parties have been murdered for political reasons since February 2018. The count of similar deaths between 2000 and 2017 escalates to over 170, according to the same report. The increasingly restive political air in Kerala only shows how tight the fight is going to be. 26 million voters are enlisted for voting on April 23, the <keyword id="2211307" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Third-phase-of-polling">third phase of polling</keyword> in the ongoing elections for the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian Parliament. The voter turnout in the state was a record 73.6% in 2014, <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/elections-news/election-2014-kerala-records-73-6-per-cent-voter-turnout-highest-since-1991-556911" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">the highest since 1991</a>. The United Democratic Front led by the Indian National Congress bagged 12 seats while the remaining eight went to the LDF led by the communist party-led coalition. However, the BJP is expected to be a strong contender this time around, more than it has been ever before. The threat from the BJP is seen as the strongest in some regions that have strong Hindu majority, where people are peeved by a 2018 Supreme Court verdict that allowed <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/supreme-court-allows-women-to-enter-sabarimala-temple/articleshow/65989807.cms">women into the Sabarimala Temple</a>. Tradition did not allow women of menstruating age into the temple until the court verdict. The <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/elections/lok-sabha-elections-2019/kerala/news/will-do-everything-to-protect-sabarimala-shah/articleshow/68971697.cms">BJP and its ideological parent, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh</a> (RSS), milked the issue and kept the anger alive to turn it against the incumbent Parliamentarians. Hindus make up for only 54% of the state’s population, according to the 2011 Census, compared to 80% nationally. 26% of Kerala’s population are Muslims and 18% are Christians. However, the RSS has had a strong support base in Kerala for years but the <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/thiruvananthapuram/rss-strengthening-base-in-kerala-number-of-shakhas-rising/articleshow/57147070.cms">hindu natioanlist organisation</a> is now stronger in the state than ever before. The odds of BJP getting more votes than before are higher but <a href="https://www.timesnownews.com/elections/article/opinion-poll-for-lok-sabha-election-2019-live-times-now-vmr-survey-for-bjp-congress-narendra-modi-rahul-gandhi/384850">most opinion polls</a> have still pegged it as a two-way fight between the UDF and the LDF in the state. A big factor working in favour of the LDF is the <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/kerala-will-set-an-example-in-rebuilding-rehabilitation-pinarayi-vijayan/articleshow/65481744.cms">elevated reputation of state Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan</a>. He won accolades for effectively managing a devastating flood in the state in 2018. The state also has a long history of leftists dominating state politics. Kerala’s first chief minister in 1957, EMS Namboodiripad, was one of the world’s first communist leaders to head an elected government. On the other hand, UDF led by Congress is trying to squeeze the BJP out by supporting the protests against the entry of women into the Sabarimala Temple. “Well, you cannot afford to write off the votes of the majority in times of political interest,” <a href="https://qz.com/india/1601119/election-2019-congresss-tharoor-battles-modis-bjp-in-kerala/">Congress leader Shashi Tharoor</a> fighting to defend the state capital Thriuvananthapuram told Quartz. The margin for error has shrunk significantly for Tharoor who swept the seat with 100,000 more votes than the second candidate in 2009. By 2014, it had shrunk to 14,000 and this time it is expected to be even tighter. Given that tensions are running high, voter turnout may become a deciding factor. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/lok-sabha-election-2019-3rd-phase-polling-live-updates/liveblog/68999100.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">LIVE BLOG: Voting in 117 constituencies underway</a>

You Searched For "Sabarimala verdict" and got 9 results

Supreme Court moves Sabarimala case to a 7-judge bench

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‘Women’s Wall’ thrice the length of Singapore’s coastline is standing up against patriarchy in India

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Sabarimala temple continues to be an election issue in Kerala

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Protestors flock as this Indian temple finally opens its gate to women

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10 landmark judgements India’s Supreme Court passed in 2018

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Supreme Court of India lifts ban, women of all ages can now enter Sabarimala temple

Prabhjote Gill

Essential and integral religious practices can be overruled if they are biased: SC

BI India Bureau

Mumbai can have dance bars again but conditions apply

Sriram Iyer

Voter turnout may be tested in India’s most literate state that has seen one of the most violent election campaigns

Sriram Iyer

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