NEW DELHI, Jan. 1 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of thousands women from across India's southern state of Kerala Tuesday lined up to form a human chain called "women wall" to uphold gender equality and renaissance values, officials said.
The organisers said over 5 million women participated in the event. The claim, however, could not be independently confirmed.
The wall according to organisers was formed from Kasargod district in northern part of state to Thiruvananthapuram, the southernmost district and capital city in a bid to oppose recent frenzied protests in Sabarimala after government decided to implement the Supreme Court verdict, allowing all women to pray at the Ayyappa shrine.
Last year India's Supreme Court struck down the archaic belief that prevented women of menstruating age to enter the Lord Ayyappa shrine in the state.
"Religion cannot be the cover to deny women right to worship," the court in its order said.
Prior to the court order women were prevented from entering the temple.
The restrictions on women entering the Sabarimala shrine reflected an archaic belief that menstruating women are "impure" and the deity Ayyappa is celibate.
Many take a vow of celibacy for 41 days before embarking on a trek through the mountains to the temple.
However, court order triggered protests and women's passage to the temple was blocked by protesters.
Tuesday's event was organised by Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) and the Left Democratic Front (LDF), besides 176 other socio-political organizations.
"Participants across Kerala took a pledge to protect the state from the right-wing offensives on its renaissance tradition and values," a CPI-M spokesman said. "Women from all classes and cultural backgrounds formed the bulwark against the offensive of conservative right-wing on women's rights."
Local health minister K K Shylaja lead the chain at Kasargod and CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat was the last person at the end of the chain in Thiruvananthapuram.
Reports said women from all walks of life stood alongside highway that runs from Kasargode to Thiruvananthapuram and after standing for 15 minutes, dispersed peacefully.
The human chain formation had full local government backing.
