Sabarimala Gold Case: SIT Names Former Devaswom Board Chief, E Member In Kerala HC

Published 30 June 2026 · local

Sabarimala Gold Case: SIT Names Devaswom Board Chief, E Member In Kerala HC Reported By, Edited By Last Updated: June 30, 2026, 11:41 IST The

Sabarimala Gold Case: SIT Names Devaswom Board Chief, E Member In Kerala HC Reported By, Edited By Last Updated: June 30, 2026, 11:41 IST The SIT also informed the high court that its investigation into the alleged misappropriation of gold from the Sabarimala temple’s door frames has been completed Rapid Read Sabarimala Temple (Image: PTI/ File) The Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed to probe gold theft in Sabarimala has informed the Kerala High Court that it has collected material establishing the alleged role of PS Prashanth, former president of the Travancore Devaswom Board, and advocate A Ajikumar, former member of the board, in the case. Both were not included in the list of accused earlier. According to the SIT, the acts committed by the accused, acting in concert and pursuant to a premeditated criminal conspiracy, disclose offences including criminal breach of trust, forgery and criminal conspiracy, punishable under Sections 316(2), 316(5), 336(2) and 61(2), read with Section 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. The SIT also informed the high court that its investigation into the alleged misappropriation of gold from the Sabarimala temple’s door frames has been completed.

However, it sought additional time to complete the investigation into the alleged misappropriation of gold from the Dwarapalaka idols. Referring to the SIT’s findings, the high court order states: “The investigation conducted so reveals that the Dwarapalakas, which were originally clad with gold in the year 1998, were transported to Chennai in the year 2019 at the request of Unnikrishnan Potty. In the process of granting permission for the transportation of Gold from Sannidhanam, the officers of the Board, with malicious motive, deliberately described the gold-clad Dwarapalakas as copper plates and concealed its true nature. This was obviously to remove the gold from the Dwarapalakas and to plate a thin film of gold on the same." The court further observed that during the work undertaken in Chennai, the original gold cladding was removed and, since only a minimal quantity of gold was required for re-plating, the remaining extracted gold was allegedly misappropriated by the accused. The order further states: “Within a few months, however, the gold plating deteriorated, exposing the underlying copper surface. The accused was alerted that if a fresh plating of gold is not made, the dubious acts committed in 2019 would be revealed.

The investigation further reveals that, in order to conceal the pilferage and misappropriation of the gold committed during the year 2019, the sponsor and the officers involved entered into a criminal conspiracy to once again transport the Dwarapalakas to Chennai under the guise of carrying out fresh gold plating." According to the court order, the sponsor, along with the proprietor of the firm that undertook the gold-plating work, entered into a criminal conspiracy with officers and employees of the Travancore Devaswom Board and succeeded in influencing the board’s decision-making process. The high court order further records: “The report further states that overwhelming materials have been collected, clearly establishing the role of (1) Murari Babu, former Executive Officer, Sabarimala; (2) Unnikrishnan Potty, the sponsor; (3) Pankaj Bhandari, proprietor of Smart Creations, Chennai; (4) P.S. Prashanth, former President of the Travancore Devaswom Board; (5) Adv. A. Ajikumar, former Member, Travancore Devaswom Board; (6) Sri. Kandararu Rajeevaru, Chief Priest (Thantri), Sabarimala; and (7) Rejilal, former Thiruvabharanam Commissioner of the Travancore Devaswom Board. “The Special Investigation Team has concluded that the acts committed by the accused, acting in concert and pursuant to a premeditated criminal conspiracy, disclose the commission of offences including criminal breach of trust, forgery and criminal conspiracy, punishable under Sections 316(2), 316(5), 336(2) and 61(2) read with Section 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023." News18 Newsletter Handpicked stories, in your inbox A newsletter with the best of our journalism submit About the Author Neethu Reghukumar Neethu Reghukumar, Principal Correspondent at CNN-News18, has 12 years of experience in both print and broadcast journalism.