Restore spot booking for Sabarimala pilgrims: Kerala Opposition leader Satheesan

V.D. Satheesan urges Kerala Government to restore spot booking at Sabarimala temple to avoid social tension and law issues.

Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan has urged the State Government to restore spot booking for devotees visiting Sabarimala temple. 

In a letter to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Mr. Satheesan also protested the Government’s decision to limit the number of pilgrims aspiring for darshan to not more than 80,000 every day. 

He said that in previous years, the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) had allowed at least 15,000 pilgrims to Sannidhanam every day through spot booking. It had allowed at least 90,000 devotees for darshan.

Despite the relatively relaxed gatekeeping in 2023, Mr. Satheesan pointed out that scores returned home without making the uphill trek to the temple during the 2023 pilgrimage season. 

He said the Government’s decision to allow only those who have reserved their darshan through the TDB’s virtual queue system would create avoidable social tension.

Mr. Satheesan said hundreds of tourists from other States trekked long distances to reach Sabarimala. The Government could not assume that every pilgrim was computer-literate and knowledgeable about booking their places through the online system. 

Mr. Satheesan said preventing pilgrims from getting darshan could cause law and order issues. He urged the government to expand toilets, drinking water, camping and parking facilities to host the lakhs of pilgrims likely to visit Sabarimala during the November-January mandala season.