Supreme Court receives fresh submissions in Sabarimala review petition

metro india news  I hyderabad

Senior Advocate Nachiketa Joshi has filed detailed written submissions on behalf of Dr. Namburi Kanakadurga, a 66-year-old scholar from Khammam, Telangana, seeking to implead in the ongoing review petition concerning the Sabarimala temple case.The submissions were filed in I.A. No. 69227 of 2026 in Review Petition (Civil) No. 3358 of 2018 arising out of Writ Petition (Civil) No. 373 of 2006 (Kantaru Rajeevaru vs. Indian Young Lawyers Association).

Dr. Namburi Kanakadurga, representing the devotional Tiruppan Alwar Ammal (SC/ST) community, has urged the Supreme Court to recognise what she describes as the “Article 26(b) Ammal Duty” — a motherly duty to protect the rights, dignity, and essential religious character of Hindu Deities.

The applicant argues that these pre-constitutional covenants create a structural limit on constituent and judicial power, protected under Article 26(b) read with Article 363 of the Constitution, making certain aspects non-justiciable. 

The submissions trace a detailed historical and constitutional timeline tracing way back to January 1750 when Maharaja Marthanda Varma dedicated the entire Travancore Kingdom to Lord Padmanabha Swamy, declaring the Deity as the sovereign ruler and positioning himself(the king) only as a servant (Daasa) of the Deity; upto the 1949 Covenant & Instrument of Accession which, Dr.Kanakadurga cited to argue that the administration of temples, including Sabarimala (under the Travancore Devaswom Board), carries a constitutional obligation to protect the Deity’s traditions.

Key Contentions

The Sabarimala Temple’s tradition of Naishtika Brahmacharya (eternal celibacy) of Lord Ayyappa forms an essential part of the Deity’s religious character and cannot be overridden. Individual rights under Article 25 cannot be used to destroy the essential religious practices protected under Article 26(b) for the denomination.  

The devotional SC/ST community has a special “Ammal Duty” to protect Deity interests as a maternal obligation arising from the blessings received through the 1936 Proclamation. The Union of India, as a civilization state, should support these submissions to protect pre-constitutional devotional rights. The filings also reference the Pran Pratishtha at Shri Ram Janmabhoomi on January 22, 2024, as a constitutional reaffirmation of Dharma principles.

Apart from the latest written statement filed on May 23, 2026, earlier submissions were filed on March 14, April 30, and May 14, 2026, along with supporting historical annexures including translations of the Thrippadi Danam, the 1936 Temple Entry Proclamation, and the Travancore-Cochin Covenant. The Supreme Court is yet to list the impleadment application and review petition for hearing. This intervention adds a significant historical, denominational, and civilizational dimension to the long-pending Sabarimala review proceedings.