Kochi: There was no need to waste the valuable time of the judiciary with cases like the entry of women of all ages to the Sabarimla Temple, Justice (retd) B Kemal Pasha has said.
Instead, what was needed at Sabarimala was self-restraint, he added. Kemal Pasha also said that he did not understand what relevance the petitions filed in this regard had.
Delivering the keynote address at the Tulika award function, Kemal Pasha observed that there was no need for litigation over an age-old practice. “The argument that Ayyappa devotees were a separate sect led to such a judgment. When such a point was raised, the court had to go strictly by the law,” he said.
The judge said that such issues should never go to the court. “Tomorrow, somebody may file a plea demanding a woman as head priest at Sabarimala. In that case, the court will have to give a judgment according to the law,” he felt.
Self-restraint has to be observed in such matters. “They should not be turned into major social issues,” said Kemal Pasha.
According to him, the demand for forest land to set up facilities for women at Sabarimala was impractical.
“While grave problems like homelessness, educational backwardness and lack of basic facilities exist in society, valuable time of the judiciary is spent on Sabarimala, adultery and homosexuality,” he said, making an appeal to the people not to approach the court over such matters.
The retired judge also felt that everyone should show the willingness to admit their faults. “Defending a mistake is wrong. This applies to media persons also. We should all fight against injustice,” he said.
Kemal Pasha opined that harassment of men also is a reality, but its scale was small.
“Everyone will try to justify his or her actions. But it is regrettable that our judicial system is not justifying itself,” he observed.
