Nashik: Activist Trupti Desai and members of her Bhumata Brigade were detained about 30 kms from Trimbakeshwar temple after they tried to march to the Nashik shrine demanding right for women to enter the inner sanctum.
More than a hundred women activists were stopped at Nandur Shingote near the Nashik-Pune border and taken into custody after they insisted on proceeding to the temple on the occasion of Mahashivratri.
"We have been stopped again by the police. Where is the Chief Minister? we want him to intervene and allow us entry into the Trimbakeshwar temple," Desai said.
The Trimbakeshwar temple trust has maintained that the ban on entry of women is based on tradition, claiming that no objection has ever been raised by believers. It is a major Shiva temple , housing one of the 12 'jyotirlingas', and draws devotees from different parts of the country.
Last January, Desai and other activists of the Bhumata Brigade were stopped by Maharashtra police from marching to the Shani Shingnapur temple in Ahmednagar district to force entry for women in the inner sanctum. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis stepped in immediately after the incident saying he is in favour of entry for women at all places of worship.
The activists argue that the traditional practices at both these temples violate the Constitution which guarantees freedom of worship for all irrespective of gender.
"I would like to say to tell Hindutva groups that I am Hindu too. This is not a fight of religion or of god, this is a fight for women's rights," Desai said.
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