Protests in Kerala | Photo Credit: ANI

Sabarimala (Kerala): After a lot of failed attempts despite a Supreme Court order in the matter, two women finally managed to enter the Lord Ayyappa Temple at Sabarimala in Kerala on Wednesday. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan confirmed that the women - Kanakadurga (42) and Bindu (42) - entered the temple early this morning and offered prayers.

Following the development, the temple, which opened its gates at 3 am and was due to shut at 12.30 pm, closed its doors early at 10.30 am for 'purification' rituals. Protests have also broken out in the state following the development.

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Women enter Sabarimala Temple, row erupts: Latest Updates

5:15 pm: Clashes have been reported between BJP workers and the police during a protest in Thiruvananthapuram over the entry of two women in Sabarimala Temple.

Thiruvananthapuram: Clash between BJP workers and the police during a protest over the entry of two women in Sabarimala temple. #Kerala pic.twitter.com/uaO250ZEl9 — ANI (@ANI) January 2, 2019

3:00 pm: Social activist Trupti Desai has hailed the entry of two women in their mid-forties into the Sabarimala Temple, calling it a "victory of equality". "This is a big victory for our agitation. It is a victory of equality. This is a good beginning for women in the new year. Those against women's entry had openly thrown a challenge that no women in the 10-50 age group will be able to reach the 'sannidhanam'. Their agitation has now failed," Desai told news agency PTI.

1:30 pm: There are reports of massive protests starting in Kerala after two women managed to enter the Sabarimala Temple to offer prayers. Times Now reported that the houses of the two women have been pelted with stones. A state minister was also shown black flags by protesters.

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1:00 pm: Five members of BJP’s Mahila Morcha protest against two women entering Sabarimala Temple today. They were stopped from entering the State Secretariat by police in Thiruvananthapuram.

11:40 am: Kerala DGP Lokanath Behera says on the two women in their 40s offering prayers at Sabarimala Temple: “It is the responsibility of police to give protection to those who come and we did it. Verifying the age and other details is not our responsibility.”

10:40 am: The Sabarimala Temple in Kerala has been closed for purification rituals. Two women devotees in their 40s had entered the temple early today.

10:30 am: “Today, two women entered Sabarimala Temple. We had issued standing orders to police to provide all possible protection to any woman who wants to enter the temple,” says Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

9:15 am: Reports say two women devotees - Bindu and Kanakadurga - in their 40s entered and offered prayers at Kerala's Sabarimala Temple at 3.45 am today. They were accompanied by police personnel. They had tried to visit Sabarimala Temple in December last year but failed amidst massive protests.