Thiruvananthapuram: Bindu and Kanakadurga, who scripted history by becoming the first women to visit the Sabarimala shrine in Kerala following the Supreme Court judgement that struck down the entry ban, were extolled as "heroines of renaissance" in a college magazine, which soon earned the ire of right-wing groups.
A collective of Hindu organisations is planning a protest march to Mar Athanasius College of Engineering in Kothamangalam that published the magazine ‘Aana Kera Mala, Aadu Kera Mala, Aayiram Kanthari Poothirangi’ (Where elephant fears to tread, a thousand daredevils flocked in).
Hindu Aikya Vedi, a Hindu collective, has also filed a case with the police. Apart from coming up with a laudatory piece on both women, the magazine also speaks in favour of ‘Meesha’, a controversial novel that was pulled off the shelves for ridiculing female temple visitors, and, ‘Aarpo Aarthavam’, a campaign celebrating menstruation.
The protesters also pointed out the absence of topics related to church-related controversies that have erupted in recent times and accused the magazine's editors of distorting history.
Hindu Aikya Vedi president PK Sasikala came down heavily against the magazine through a Facebook post, asking the students why they were only targetting one religion. She also asked whether minority status gave one licence to trample the majority. Sasikala has demanded that a case be registered against the magazine's editor.
Following the hue and cry, the college has decided to withdraw the magazine. In an official statement by the principal of Mar Athanasius College of Engineering, the college authorities made it clear that the magazine is withheld as certain remarks in it do not toe the line with the college's point-of-view.
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