Dehradun: Shankaracharya Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati has waded into a controversy by saying that entry of women in the Shani Shingnapur temple will lead to rise in crimes against them like rape.

"Women should not feel triumphant about visiting the sanctum sanctorum of Shani Shingnapur temple in Maharashtra.  They should stop all the drum beating about what they have done. Worshipping Shani will bring ill luck to them and give rise to crimes against them like rape," he told reporters in Haridwar yesterday.