A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court on Tuesday dismissed a plea by a 10-year-old girl for permission to go on a pilgrimage to Sabarimala, on the ground that the issue of entry of women between 10 and 50 years is still pending before a Larger Bench of the Supreme Court.
The Bench comprising Justice Anil K. Narendran and Justice Harisankar V. Menon while dismissing the petition filed by the 10-year-old from Bengaluru North, Karnataka, observed that since the question regarding the interplay between freedom of religion under Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution and the provisions in Part III, particular Article 14 and connected issues are pending before a larger Bench of the Apex Court on review petitions, the petitioner could not invoke the writ jurisdiction of Article 226 of the Constitution seeking such a relief.
When the petition came up for hearing, the Travancore Devaswom Board took exemption to the plea of the girl saying that since the crux of the matter involved in this case was pending consideration before a larger Bench of the Apex Court, which has reframed the issues, it is not proper for the Board to have a say in either way. The petitioner has to wait till the Apex Court decides on the issue finally, TDB submitted.
