Outfit heading Shani temple stir develops cracks; 3 expelled

Fissures have appeared in the women's organisation spearheading the movement to end gender discrimination at Maharashtra's Shani Shingnapur temple with three of its key members expelled by the outfit.
Bhumata Brigade shot into limelight when its members took out a high-voltage march on January 26 to defy the centuries-old tradition and enter the temple's core area where women's entry is prohibited, but their attempt was thwarted by authorities.
Trupti Desai, the outfit's President has expelled three of its active members, including the Vice-President, for "going against" the organisation's interests.
Confirming the development, Desai told PTI today she has expelled the three members, including Vice-President Pushpak Kewadkar for "going against the organisation's interests by airing their dissent against her style of functioning to the media".

Asked as to why her colleagues chose to desert her, Desai said they felt "sidelined with the media focusing on me as the President" during the agitation to press for women's right to step on the sacred platform at the temple dedicated to Lord Shani in Ahmednagar district, about 120km from here.
"The Brigade has over 4,000 member-activists and this will not have any impact on our programmes," she added.

Besides Kewadkar, the other expelled members are Priyanka Jagtap (spokesperson) and Durga Shukre. All three were in the forefront of the temple stir that hogged national and international headlines.
Desai said she would go ahead with her plan of meeting Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis whose office was expected to confirm her appointment with him this week to discuss the temple impasse following the trustees' refusal to allow women to approach the inner sanctum for worship.

A mediation effort on part of spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravishankar had failed to end the deadlock on the issue with Desai refusing to accept the 'Tirupati model' of darshan that would keep both men and women away from the inner sanctum which houses an idol of Lord Shani.