Kerala HC pulls the plug on community policing at famed Sabarimala temple
Kochi: The Kerala High Court on Friday ordered the end of the ‘Punyam Poonkavanam Project’, or community policing activity, at the premises and the surroundings of the famed hilltop Sabarimala shrine in Pathanamthitta district.
Through this project, begun in 2011, the temple town was kept clean and it involved the active participation of devotees, the police and other government departments.
A division bench of Justices Anil K. Narendran and S. Muralee Krishna passed the order after a preliminary police report revealed the unauthorised collection of funds by the coordinator of the project.
The court also directed the state government to take appropriate action based on the police report.
As per the scheme prepared by the Kerala Police for the 2022-23 Sabarimala festival season, special officers and police controllers were responsible for assisting and coordinating with the project.
The suo motu case was initiated after the Kottayam police chief informed the Special Commissioner of the temple about the alleged unauthorised fund collection by the project’s coordinator at Erumeli through a letter in March 2023.
After a probe was conducted, it revealed that money was being collected from devotees under the name of the project without proper authorisation.
When the court heard about this, it expressed shock over the collection of funds from the devotees in the name of the project and ordered the state to stop the project.
Perched at an altitude of 914 metres in the Western Ghats, Sabarimala temple attracts millions of devotees each year.
Located approximately four kilometres uphill from the Pamba River, the temple is one of the most important pilgrimage destinations in India.
Pilgrims observe a strict 41-day penance before embarking on the pilgrimage, which includes fasting, wearing black dhotis, avoiding footwear, and sticking to a vegetarian diet.
A key ritual involves carrying ‘Irumudi’, a prayer kit containing coconuts, which must be broken before climbing the temple’s 18 sacred steps.
Without the Irumudi, pilgrims are not allowed to ascend the steps to the sanctum sanctorum.