Madikeri: A lodge owner in Virajpet in Kodagu district has revealed that the two women who entered the Sabarimala Temple had stayed at his lodge in Virajpet.
The two women Kanaga Durga (44) and Bindhu Ammini (42) had booked a room at Seethalakshmi Lodge on Dec.29. CCTV footages of their visit have been released. Hariharan, owner of the lodge, told media that he recognised them when their images and visuals appeared on TV after they visited the hill shrine.
Kanaga Durga, a Malappuram native and Bindhu, a Kozhikode native, started their climb around midnight and reached the temple after 3.45 am on Jan.2 and left after praying to Lord Ayyappa. Before their trek, they stayed at the lodge in Virajpet.
CCTV footages of the lodge show that the women checked into the lodge at Doddatti Chowk on Dec.29 at 2 pm and the room was booked by Bindhu in her name. Sources said that a team of Policemen from Kerala accompanied the women and they were in mufti.
At the lodge, the women, along with the Policemen, discussed the strategy to enter the temple. While the Police team left for Kerala, Kanaga Durga and Bindhu stayed at the lodge for two more days and vacated the room on Dec.31 at 10.30 am.
Meanwhile, Bindhu and Kanaga Durga are currently in a safe location and are being given protection by the Police as they face the threat of protests and violence from people who are angry that they entered the shrine.
Who are Bindhu and Kanaga Durga?
Bindhu Ammini is a lawyer and currently teaches at the School of Legal Studies, Kannur University. After completing her Master’s in Law, she has taught in several colleges and universities, including the Calicut University. A student activist who was member of the leftist Kerala Vidyarthi Sanghatan, Bindhu was later associated with the CPI (ML).
In her younger days, Bindhu was active in student politics. She served as a leader of the Kerala Vidyarthi Sanghatan, a leftist student organisation. She took to teaching after completing a Master’s in Law from Kerala University, and currently teaches at the School of Legal Studies, Kannur University. The Pathanamthitta native is also registered and working as an advocate in Koyilandy Court. Bindhu’s husband Hariharan is a lecturer.
Kanaga Durga, an employee with the Kerala State Civil Supplies Corporation from Angadipuram in Malappuram. Bindhu and Kanaga Durga got acquainted with each other through a Facebook page called ‘Renaissance Kerala,’ a page where women who wanted to go to Sabarimala would converge.
Bindhu and Kanaga Durga had tried to trek to Sabarimala on Dec.24, and their attempt was aborted after protests. Following this, Bindhu’s house in Areekode and her husband’s house in Angadipuram had been attacked.
This post was published on January 4, 2019 6:41 pm