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Bindu Ammini, First Woman To Enter Sabarimala In 2018, Attacked With Chilli Powder

Bindu Ammini was attacked outside the police commissioner's office in Kochi.
Bindu Ammini
Sivaram V / Reuters
Bindu Ammini

Bindu Ammini, one of the first two women to enter Sabarimala temple after the Supreme Court’s 2018 verdict, was on Tuesday attacked with chilli and pepper powder outside the police commissioner’s office in Kochi, Kerala.

Bindu’s friend Kanakadurga, who had entered the shrine with her on January 2 this year, was recently at the centre of a massive misinformation campaign on social media in Kerala.

NDTV’s Sneha Mary Koshy reported that Bindu was sprayed with chilli by protesters outside the commissioner’s office.

While Mathrubhumi and Malayala Manorama reported Bindu was in the city as part of the six-member team led by Trupti Desai who planned to visit the shrine, The NewsMinute said video of the attack showed Bindu asking the attacker why he assumed she was going to Sabarimala.

Activist Trupti Desai, who arrived in the state early Tuesday, had been taken to the city police commissionerate from the Kochi airport. She approached the police seeking security for her group’s visit to the temple.

Desai told the media they preferred to visit the shrine on November 26 as it was Constitution Day.

She said she had come with a copy of the 2018 order of the Supreme Court permitting entry of women of all age groups into the Lord Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala.

“I will leave Kerala only after offering prayers at the shrine,” the activist said, PTI quoted.

The Supreme Court has referred its 2018 Sabarimala verdict to a larger bench for review, but has not stayed its previous order.

The Kerala government has said it would not provide protection to women in traditionally barred age group unless they get a court order.

(This is a developing story.)

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.