Kerala HC pulls up Sabarimala guard shoving devotees

The court expressed its displeasure and asked who is this person and what authority does he have to touch the body of pilgrims.

Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 17: The Kerala High Court on Monday pulled up a Sabarimala temple guard, caught pushing and shoving devotees praying before the deity on Saturday, one of the busy days of the two-month-long pilgrimage season.

A video of guard Arun Kumar, who is connected to CPM's Travancore Devasom Board, the body which manages the daily operations of the hilltop shrine, had gone viral on social media.

Hearing the case, the court expressed its displeasure and asked who is this person and what authority does he have to touch the body of pilgrims.

"The manner in which the Devaswom guard by name, 'Arun', regulated the movement of pilgrims in front of Sreekovil, through the first row, was in flagrant violation of the directions issued by this court in the decision in Sajeev Sastharam," the bench said, according to OpIndia.

The state government counsel defended saying the act was done as part of the crowd control, the court pointed out that there are scientific methods of crowd control and that is the duty of the police.

The court asked to include the TDB's top official and also Arun Kumar as a party in the case and posted the case for next Tuesday.

Arun Kumar is identified as a trade union leader of the CPI-M attached to the TDB and is a close aide of State Education Minister V. Sivankutty. The TDB suspended Arun Kumar for his act.