Kochi (Kerala) [India], September 18 : The Kerala High Court has ordered a probe into discrepancies in the Sabarimala temple's gold plating project after finding that plates sent for work in 2019 returned with four kg less gold than in the records.
The court directed the Chief Vigilance and Security Officer, who is Superintendent of Police of the Travancore Devaswom Board, to conduct a detailed enquiry into the alleged loss of gold from the 'Dwarapalaka idols', which means door guardian at the Sabarimala temple.
A Division bench of Justice Raja Vijayaraghavan V and Justice KV Jayakumar issued the directions while considering a report of the Special Commissioner raising concerns over the removal of the gold-plated copper coverings of the 'Dwarapalaka Idols' in Sabarimala for repair works without prior intimation.
The controversy began when the Board removed the gold-plated copper plates covering the 'Dwarapalaka idols' without prior intimation or approval from the Sabarimala Special Commissioner or the Court for repair and electroplating.
Dwarapalaka idols were originally made in the year 1999. In 2019, following a request from the sponsor, Unnikrishnan Potti, the gold was sent for re-plating to a Chennai-based firm, Smart Creations. It was while the idols were in the firm's possession that the weight of the gold plating decreased by about 4 kg.
In the issue, the court said that the registers which are placed before the Court by the Chief Security Officers shall be returned so that the proper investigation will be conducted, and it directs the Board to provide all sorts of cooperation to the Chief Vigilance Officer to ensure that the directions issued are taken forward and the truth of the matter is brought to light. Senior government pleader S Rajmohan appeared for the State.
Standing counsel G Biju represented the Travancore Devaswom Board in court. Advocate Sayujya Radhakrishnan appearing as amicus curiae for the Sabarimala Special Commissioner. Advocates R. Sudhish and M Manju represented Unnikrishnan Potti.