Entry of men restricted in many temples: Centre to Supreme Court in Sabarimala reference

“I have given instances of temples where men are not allowed. There are temples where male priests are under a religious mandate to wash the feet of female devotees,” Mehta said.

He also cited temples where married men are prohibited from entering, and referred to a temple in Kerala where men are required to dress as women, often with the assistance of female family members.

“There are temples like the Pushkar temple where married men are not allowed. There is one temple in Kerala where the system is that man will go dressed as women. They go to a beauty parlour and lady family members help them dress wearing saree and other things. Only males go,” he remarked.

Emphasising these examples, Mehta submitted that religious practices cannot be categorised as male-centric or female-centric.

Sabarimala reference

The Supreme Court is hearing the pleas concerning discrimination against women at religious places, including the Sabarimala temple, and the scope of religious freedom under the Constitution.

A nine-judge bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant is presiding over the bench, which includes Justices B V Nagarathna, M M Sundresh, Ahsanuddin Amanullah, Aravind Kumar, Augustine George Masih, Prasanna B Varale, R Mahadevan and Joymalya Bagchi.

A nine-judge bench is hearing the Sabarimala reference.

On September 28, 2018, a five-judge bench of the Supreme Court, by a 4:1 majority, lifted the age restriction on women visitors and struck down as unconstitutional Rule 3(b) of the Kerala Hindu Places of Public Worship Rules, 1965, which allowed the exclusion of women on the grounds of custom.