'A woman cannot be untouchable for three days a month,' says SC Justice Nagarathna in Sabarimala hearing

A woman cannot be treated as "untouchable" for three days a month and cease to be considered untouchable on the fourth day, Supreme Court Justice BV Nagarathna underlined on Tuesday (April 07) while hearing petitions related to discrimination against women at religious places.

Justice Nagarathna made these remarks while sitting on a nine-judge Constitution Bench hearing a cluster of cases regarding the entry of women into religious places, primarily centred on the Sabarimala Temple.

The bench is adjudicating a batch of review petitions challenging the 2018 verdict, which had originally lifted the ban on women of menstruating age (10–50 years) from entering the shrine.

Justice Nagarathna, the lone woman on the bench, expressed doubts about the application of Article 17 in the case, noting that the article was made a fundamental right in the context of the long history of untouchability.

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"Article 17, in the context of Sabarimala, I don't know how it can be argued. Speaking as a woman, there can't be a three-day untouchability every month, and on the fourth day, there is no untouchability," she said.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Union Government, requested the court to uphold the traditional restrictions, arguing that the issue falls within the "domain of religious faith and denominational autonomy." He cautioned against applying Western concepts like "patriarchy" to Indian religious traditions.

Taking strong exception to this line of reasoning, Mehta said, "One opinion in Sabarimala says Article 17 applies to women, you are treating them as untouchables, I have a very strong objection to it."