India: Woman thrown out by in-laws for entering temple

By Ahmad Adil

CHANDIGARH, India (AA) - One of the two Indian women who defied a centuries-old ban on entering a temple in a southern state was not allowed to enter her in-laws' house on Tuesday, local media reported.

Tuesday's incident occurred a week after Kanaka Durga, 39, was assaulted by her mother-in-law following which she had to be hospitalized, broadcaster NDTV reported.

The women, Bindu Ammini and Durga, entered the Sabarimala temple in Kerala to pray on Jan. 2, triggering protests in parts of Kerala state.

The top court has ordered the state government to provide the women 24-hour security.

The in-laws claim the woman has hurt sentiments of the devotees with her action, said a report in newspaper Deccan Chronicle.

Last September, the Supreme Court ordered an end to a ban on women or girls of menstruating age from entering the hilltop temple.

But the temple devotees refused to implement the ruling saying Lord Ayyappa, a Hindu deity, was celibate. The temple draws millions of worshippers every year.