The doors of the Sabarimala Temple have been thrown open for a-five-day monthly puja. Though the police had requested district administration to impose section 144 CRPC in the area, prohibitory order has not been enforced as yet. Even as the hill temple opened its doors, many pilgrims, fearing violence over the entry of women into the shrine, opted to keep away from the pilgrimage.

The head priest of Sabarimala temple claimed that 'purification' ritual followed at the shrine, on the day the two-women below 50-years entered the temple, was for an-unrelated-reason. In an-explanation given to Travancore Devaswom Board, which controls the administration of Sabarimala, chief-priest denied the allegations of ordering 'purification' rituals because of entry of the two-women, including one belonging to a scheduled-caste, sources have told NDTV.

Kanakdurga, one of the two women who entered Kerala's Sabarimala and became the first to defy the temple's ban on women of menstrual age, was beaten up by her mother-in-law upon her return home. She sustained a head injury and is currently undergoing treatment at a hospital. "Her mother-in-law...was not in favour of Kanakdurga entering Sabarimala temple," her friend said.