Ahmednagar: Police took hundreds of women activists into preventive custody after they tried to break an ancient tradition and enter the inner sanctum of the Shani Shingnapur temple in Maharashtra.
The women were taken to the local police station after they held a brief sit-in protest when they were stopped by police and villagers at Supa village, 70 kms from the shrine.
The face-off continued for hours, with several women among the villagers who stopped activists from proceeding towards the temple. Some of the protesters complained they were roughed up.
"We were marching peacefully. This is a black day for women. They are stopping women from exercising their right, "said Trupti Desai, president of Bhumata Ranragini Brigade, who led the protests.
She demanded to know why women were being discriminated against and asserted that activists will go ahead with their plans.
The temple is dedicated to Lord Shani, the personification of planet Saturn, and women devotees are not permitted at the platform as per the tradition followed by the shrine.
All entry points to Ahmednagar district witnessed heavy security cover with barricades and police personnel deployed at every nook and corner of the locality to prevent the activists from reaching the temple.
Police authorities sealed all approaches to the shrine, which bars women from entering the platform where Lord Shani is worshipped.
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