Sabarimala opening: Temple doors opened amid attacks on journalists

On September 28, a five-judge Constitutional bench headed by CJI Dipak Misra allowed women of all ages to enter the 800-year-old temple, overturning the Kerala Hindu Places of Public Worship (Authorization of Entry) Rules, 1965 that banned menstruating women from entering.

The bench observed that Rule 3(b) of the 1965 Rules were in clear violation of the right of Hindu women to practice religion as guaranteed by Article 25 of the Indian Constitution.

Earlier in the day, police personnel clashed with protesting devotees in several of the base camps and small towns leading to the Sabarimala temple in Kerala's Pathanamthitta district.

In several instances, protesters blocked women from approaching the temple.

Many protesters also threatened to commit suicide or self-immolate to protest against the entry of menstruating women.

Meanwhile, thousands of police personnel have been deployed.

As the day went on and protests intensified, several female journalists who went to cover the opening of temple were stopped from carrying out their professional duties.

Reporters Pooja Prasanna, Saritha S Balan, Radhika Ramaswamy, and Sneha Mary Koshy from Republic TV, The News Minute, News 18, and NDTV, respectively, were attacked and heckled by the mob, along with their TV crews.