2 Days To Explain Ban On Women At Famous #LordShaniTemple, Says Court

Hindu laws don’t call for banning women from entering temples, so the Maharashtra government has two days to explain the gender bias enforced at a famous temple dedicated to Shani, or Saturn, the Bombay High Court said today.

The Shani Shingnapur temple in Ahmednagar, 240 km from Mumbai, has for centuries barred women from its inner sanctum. In January, a group of women activists led by Trupti Desai threatened to force their way into the very core of the shrine as locals in the area, including hundreds of women, lined up to prevent that from happening. The activists were detained by the police en route to the temple.