This Dehradun temple allows entry to Dalits, women After 400 years

For nearly 400 years, Dalits and women, all in the name of "tradition", had been barred from entering the famous Parsuram temple in Garhwal's Jaunsar Bawar region. All that is set to change now with the management of the Parsuram temple announcing that "everyone will in future be welcome".

But Dalit leaders and activists, who said they had been fighting a bitter battle to end this discrimination, said a greater war was yet to be won as 339 other temples in the region still have the ban.

The decision, the temple's management said, has been taken "in a bid to move with the times". Chairman of the committee, Jawahar Singh Chauhan, told TOI on Friday, "This region is on the path of progress. Our literacy rate has gone up and people want scenarios to change." In the past few months, Dalits of the region had held several protests condemning these strictures.

The Parsuram temple announcement has come at a time when debates around restrictions placed on menstruating women from entering Sabarimala has been raging across various platforms.

Temple authorities, however, justified the prohibition that was in place till now and said there really had been no official rule stopping Dalits from coming to the temple. "Dalits are hesitant to enter the temple premises because of certain beliefs. We want to send them a message that everyone is equal before the Almighty and no one can be stopped from entering a place of worship," Chauhan added.

Welcoming the decision, Dalit leader Daulat Kunwar said, "They have finally given an official confirmation that the ban has been lifted. We have been raising this issue for the past 13 years. We welcome the move but there are 339 other temples in the region which also need to give their approval for the entry of Dalits." He rebutted Chauhan's claim and said Daits were often stopped at the temple gates with brute force.

Know for its animal sacrifices, the temple has also said that there will no more be slaughter of animals of any kind. The temple, which was built over 400 years ago, sees the largest footfall among temples of the belt. Thousands offer sacrifices here before making a wish, or after they feel something has been granted to them by god.



source:timesofindia

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