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Supreme Court Review on Sabarimala Temple Entry

Saturday, May 9, 2026
5 min read
Supreme Court Review on Sabarimala Temple Entry

The Supreme Court started looking at those long-pending review petitions on Tuesday. The whole Sabarimala temple entry thing.

The Centre, obviously, was pushing back hard. They kept defending the religious character of the shrine.

He argued that the Sabarimala issue isn't really about constitutional law. It’s about the basic nature of the deity. It shouldn’t be thrown into the constitutional adjudication box.

“Sabarimala is about an attribute of a deity ,” Mehta put it. “How can you really judge that in court?” He stressed that judges need to hold back when dealing with these deeply held religious beliefs and practices.

The bench itself was massive. They were looking at a huge range of constitutional questions. How much can courts actually step into religious customs?

Mehta kept hammering this point during the hearing. Not every religious practice can just be tested by individual rights. Denominational traditions deserve respect.

“We have to respect every denomination practice,” he said. “Everything doesn’t automatically relate to dignity or bodily freedom.” He paused. “If I go to the mazar or the gurudwara and I cover my head, I can’t just say my dignity or my right or my choice is taken away.”

He brought up the contrast. There’s this new legal thinking developing now. All sections of Hindus are meant to be included. No caste discrimination.

Then he zeroed in on Sabarimala specifically. The restriction targets a particular age group. It’s unique to the temple dedicated to Lord Ayyappa. He called it a sui generis case. He also strongly objected to trying to link it with untouchability under Article 17. That connection felt wrong.

The hearing is clearly going to drag on. The court still has to figure out this massive balance. Between what the Constitution promises and the reality of religious autonomy. It’s complicated.

Written by Gree News Team — Senior Editorial Board

Gree News Team covers international news and global affairs at Gree News. Our collective of senior editors is dedicated to providing independent, accurate, and responsible journalism for a global audience.

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