Pathanamthitta, Kerala: The Kerala High Court’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) made its first two arrests in a huge scandal about the alleged theft of gold from the holy Sabarimala Sree Ayyappa temple. The scandal, which started with gold missing from the plates on the “Dwarapalaka” statues and the side frames of the sanctum sanctorum, has soon spread into politics and became a hot topic ahead of the local body elections in Kerala.
The Case of the Misappropriated Gold
The gold-plated copper sheets that cover the “Dwarapalaka” (door guardian) sculptures and side frames of the sanctum sanctorum were given as a gift by Vijay Mallya, the chairman of the UB Group at the time, in 1999.
In September, the whole row was set on fire when R. Jayakrishnan, the Special Commissioner for Sabarimala, told the High Court that the gold-inlaid panels had been discreetly sent to a private company in Chennai called Smart Creations for renovation. This action was very bad since it was done without asking the Commissioner or the High Court’s Devaswom bench for approval. This broke the court’s rules and the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) handbook, which says that this kind of repair work must be done inside the temple.
The Most Important Irregularities Found
The High Court’s follow-up examination found shocking mistakes and gaps in two refurbishment cases:
The 2019 Renovation: Unnikrishnan Potty, a businessman from Bengaluru and a former junior priest at Sabarimala, paid for the panels to be fixed in 2019 and again in 2025. The HC was shocked that panels with a 40-year warranty following the 2019 renovation had to be fixed again just six years later.
Missing Gold: On September 17, the HC made a stunning discovery: the gold-plated panels and two “peedams” (pedestals) weighed just 38.25 kg when they got back from Chennai in 2019. This was a clear drop of more than four kilograms from their original weight of 42.80 kg, which strongly suggests that gold was stolen.
Fake Documents: A TDB document also said that the costly gold-plated panels were just “copper sheets.”
The Devaswom (Vigilance) wing uncovered two missing pedestals, which were part of the temple’s assets, in the home of Potty’s sister. This happened just days after Potty said the pedestals were missing from the temple’s safe storage.
Illegal Gold Retention: An preliminary SIT investigation said that Devaswom officials wrongly let Potty keep roughly 409 grams of gold that was taken from the gold-clad side frames.
Arrests and the Range of the Investigation
The High Court has started a number of investigations, which led to the formation of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) by the Kerala police. S. Sasidharan is in charge of the SIT, which has so far detained two people:
Unnikrishnan Potty is the main suspect in the case. He has said he is innocent and that he was “trapped.”
B Murari Babu, a former Sabarimala administrative officer, is being charged with lying in his official report this year by calling the gold-plated panels “copper sheets.”
The SIT has also charged several well-known people, such as former TDB Presidents A Padmakumar (CPI(M) leader) and N Vasu (who served in 2019), as well as all members of the TDB governing council in 2019. The investigation is now looking into Potty’s bank records and financial transactions to find the gold that is said to have been taken.
HC’s Strong Observation and the Importance of Sabarimala
The High Court said that the problems were “of the gravest nature, striking at the very core of the integrity and transparency that must guide the administration of a temple of such sanctity and public trust.” The court said it didn’t know it was opening a “hornet’s nest,” so it hired former judge KT Sankaran to make a complete, digital, and verifiable list of all the treasures at Sabarimala, which didn’t have good records of its gold, silver, and precious stones.
More than 54 lakh people visited Sabarimala during the 2024–25 season, making it one of the biggest annual pilgrimages in the world. There is a lot of debate over the temple, especially because there is still a legal dispute going on over whether or not women of menstrual age can enter. The Supreme Court overturned the prohibition in 2018, but a bigger Constitution court still hasn’t made a decision.
Political fallout
The gold affair has quickly become a big political issue:
The LDF Minister in charge of temple affairs, VN Vasavan, and the current TDB President, PS Prasanth, have both welcomed the High Court-ordered investigations and promised to help in whatever way they can. Vasavan has spoken out for TDB’s independence and the government’s promise to protect temple property.
Opposition: Congress and BJP leaders have strongly criticized the administration and called for the immediate resignation of Minister Vasavan and TDB President Prasanth. Both opposition parties have held protests all around the state, calling the administration “temple thieves” and making the issue a central part of their campaigns.