Sabarimala row: Woman activist arrested over FB post

Woman activist Rehana Fathima, who attempted to enter Sabarimala temple in October, was arrested by the Pathanamthitta Police here on Tuesday for allegedly hurting the religious sentiments of people in a Facebook post.

On September 30, Fathima had posted a picture on the social media site, dressing up like an Ayyappa devotee with the caption 'Thathvamasi'.

Fathima, along with a woman journalist, had gone to the Sabarimala temple in October. However, she had to return halfway due to protests. Later on, her house was allegedly vandalised by some unidentified miscreants.

Till now, no woman has entered the holy shrine despite Supreme Court's September 28 order that lifted the ban on the entry of women of all ages into the temple.

A string of protests was witnessed in Kerala in October when the temple opened for the first time after the Supreme Court passed the order, allowing women of all age group to enter into the shrine. Earlier, the entry of women aged between 10 and 50 years was prohibited into the shrine.