Sabarimala, Secularism and Sensationalism!

The Sabarimala imbroglio has been a populist bone of contention for political parties that have aligned despite differences for fear of upsetting a sizeable religious faction. The issues here are primarily dual in nature. The Right to Equality of women being compromised by an arguably ‘patriarchal’ custom barring those of menstrual age entry is in direct opposition to the Religious Freedom of the Sabarimala Temple Authorities in conducting their internal affairs. The September 2018 Supreme Court verdict upholding the rights of women of all ages to enter Sabarimala Temple has stirred a hornet’s nest.

Supreme Court upholds Constitutionality of Aadhaar

The historic judgement puts manufactured fears of privacy risks to rest and curtails powers of private entities to avail, use and retain data. The September 26th Supreme Court judgement on the Constitutionality of Aadhaar, following a 38-day hearing spread over four months, has fetched mixed reactions. Primarily, the Apex Court upheld Aadhaar’s Constitutionality and cleared the air saying that nothing in the Aadhaar Act violates the Right to Privacy of an individual. It (Aadhaar) served ‘a bigger public interest’, was ‘unique’, and that unique was ‘better than the best’.