The temple, located on Dhaulagiri hills on the border of Hamirpur and Bilaspur districts,is under the control of the government and as per centuries-old tradition, women are not allowed to enter the cave. They pay obeisance and have 'darshan' from a platform, a few meters away from the main cave.
The temple is visited by lakhs of people every year and the deity, an incarnation of Lord Kartikeya (elder son of Lord Shiva) is believed to have been a "Brahmachari" (bachelor) throughout his life. As per tradition, women are not permitted to go near the idol or touch it.
However, senior BJP leader from Punjab Laxmi Kanta Chawla had created a furore a few years back by demanding that women should have equal rights of worship at the temple. But the plea was not accepted on the pretext that it was an old and accepted tradition.
When contacted, Akshay Sood, the SDM and also Chairman of the Trust, said that the authorities had not put any bar on entry of women inthe cavebut as per tradition, women themselves prefer to have 'darshan' from a platform, a few meters away from the cave.
More From This Section
However, Rajinder Giri, Mahant of the temple, said that since Babaji was a Brahmachari, locals preferred that women should not to go close to him and that became a tradition which is followed till date.
The Mahant said that there is a need to convene a meeting of the heads of religious sects associated with Babaji to discuss this vital issue and till then the matter should be put on hold as any hasty decisioncould go the wrong way.