New Delhi: Inspired by the principle that “justice must not only be done, but justice must also be seen to be done”, CJI Surya Kant has constituted a nine-judge bench, including judges from all religions and a woman, to decide the validity of controversial socio-religious norms, reflecting the age-old tussle of faith versus women’s rights.Since the socio-religious issues relate to the alleged limitation of women’s rights to enter religious places, the CJI-led bench will also include Justice BV Nagarathna, the only woman judge in the SC, who will become the first woman CJI next year, Justice MM Sundaresh, Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah, a Muslim, Justice Augustine G Masih, a Christian, Justice Prasanna B Varala, a Dalit and ghazal lover, It will include Justice R Mahadevan, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice. Justice Arvind Kumar.The nine-judge bench will begin hearing from April 7 on the contentious socio-legal-religious conflict between faith and fundamental rights, which was triggered by the September 2018 decision to allow entry of women of all ages. Sabarimala TempleWhich has traditionally barred entry to women of menstrual age group.The judgment had invited a series of petitions seeking its review and similar rulings on PILs seeking entry of women into mosques, abolition of the practice of circumcision (female genital mutilation or FGN) among members of the Dawoodi Bohra community and entry of Parsi women married to non-Parsis into Agiyari (fire temples). The Center has given its support to the review petitions. The SC’s 2018 judgment had struck down the tradition of not allowing entry of female worshipers aged 10-50 into the Sabarimala temple, a faith-based belief that the presiding deity Ayyappa is a “celibate”.CJI Kant is the only judge still in service, from the nine-judge bench led by then CJI SA Bobde, which first heard the case in 2020. That nine-judge bench included CJI Bobde, and Justices R Banumathi, Ashok Bhushan, L Nageswara Rao, MM Shantanagoudar, S Abdul Nazeer, R Subhash Reddy, BR Gavai and Kant.On November 14, 2019, a five-judge bench led by then CJI Ranjan Gogoi, by a majority of three to two, did not disturb the September 28 judgment allowing entry of women of all ages, but referred the task to a seven-judge bench to develop guidelines to decide on cases involving conflict of fundamental rights and faith arising out of the entry of women in temples, mosques and agiriyas. Was. CJI Bobde, using his discretionary powers, referred the case to the 9-J bench.The Supreme Court had said that individual issues – women’s entry into Sabarimala, mosques and agiriyas as well as FGM – would be decided by smaller benches based on the guidelines laid down by a nine-judge bench.