12 hours and How Long: Trupti Desai Blocked in Kerala Airport since 4.30 in the morning

Guwahati: Trupti Desai, a female activist who wants to show her protest to the age-old tradition followed in the Sabarimala temple by entering into it, is still in the wait to be allowed to go out of the airport and head towards the Kerala temple. Trupti, along with 6 other female colleagues are based at the Kerala airport for more than twelve hours now, just because protesters of female devotee into the temple are staging a strong protest against the arrival of the female activists.

Remarkably, Trupti and her co-activists reached the Kerala airport at 4.30 in the morning and are in a halt in the airport since then under strict police protection as hundreds of protesters are blocking their way to the temple outside the airport. In fact, not only the protesters, the taxi drivers too are of the opinion that they won’t carry the female visitors to the temple breaking their decades-old tradition of not letting women of ‘menstrual’ age enter into the temple.

An adamant Trupti still wants to visit the temple saying that they will follow the SC orders and will break the decades-old custom in the Sabarimala temple. She states, "We landed at the airport by 4:30 am. We have not been able to go out because of these protests. Police have given us protection and have suggested that we wait for now. We have tried to book 3-4 taxis since morning; no one is willing to take us to Sabarimala. We will not leave Kerala without going to Sabarimala."

Meanwhile, the protesters are also making sure that Trupti and other women do not get to stay in Kerala and for that, they have visited hotels in Pathanamthitta and asked the hotel authorities not to accommodate Trupti Desai or any women visitors that belongs to the "banned" age group.

However, the latest news is that police has registered a case against the protesters who are gathering unlawfully outside the Cochin International Airport. Police states that they have registered a case under IPC Sections 143 (unlawful assembly), 147 (rioting), 341 (wrongful restraint) and 506 (1) (criminal intimidation.

Also read: All-party meet fails to end Sabarimala deadlock