Kollam (Keralam) [India], July 28 : The Kollam Vigilance Court on Tuesday granted the Special Investigation Team (SIT) one-day custody of two accused in the alleged Sabarimala gold misappropriation case to facilitate detailed custodial interrogation.
The accused, former Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) President PS Prashanth and former TDB member A Ajikumar, were remanded to the custody of the SIT, which is probing the alleged misappropriation of gold from the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple.
Following the court's order, the two accused will undergo custodial interrogation by the SIT and will be produced before the vigilance court again later on Tuesday after the completion of the questioning.
The SIT was constituted following directions from the Kerala High Court to investigate the alleged irregularities in the handling of gold donated to the temple.
The case pertains to the alleged misappropriation of approximately 4.54 kilograms of gold from the Sabarimala temple, including gold used for the Sreekovil (sanctum sanctorum) door frames and Dwarapalaka idols. The alleged irregularities are said to have taken place in 2019 during work undertaken for refinishing and re-gold-plating temple structures.
The controversy has its origins in a 1998 donation made by industrialist Vijay Mallya, who donated 30.3 kilograms of gold and around 1,900 kilograms of copper for gold-plating and cladding work at the Sabarimala temple. Subsequent inspections and court-monitored inquiries reportedly found discrepancies between the quantity of gold donated and the amount allegedly used during the work.
The case became a major political issue ahead of the 2026 Kerala Assembly elections, with the Congress targeting the then Left Democratic Front (LDF) government over the alleged irregularities. Former Travancore Devaswom Board President A. Padmakumar, who was also a CPI(M) MLA, was named as an accused in the case and was later expelled from the party after the controversy came to light.
Unnikrishnan Potti, a former helper and sponsor of the gold-plating work at the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple, was identified as the main accused in the case.
Earlier this month, Kerala Health and Devaswoms Minister K Muraleedharan reiterated the state government's demand for greater autonomy in handling the probe and appointments within the Devaswom administration.
"We want freedom to appoint Devaswom Commissioner. We want the freedom to probe the gold robbery. That's our demand," Muraleedharan had told ANI, while alleging interference by the Kerala High Court in the matter.
The SIT investigation into the alleged gold misappropriation is currently underway.