Sabarimala gold theft: Kerala cops nab controversial 'sponsor' Unnikrishnan Potty

The Kerala police nabbed the prime accused in the Sabarimala gold theft row, Unnikrishnan Potty, on Wednesday. Potty was reportedly arrested from his residence in Thiruvananthapuram. 

 

According to reports, Kerala Crime Branch's Special Investigation Team (SIT) arrested Potty from his residence at Pulimathu, Thiruvananthapuram. The probe team led by Crime Branch ADGP H. Venkatesh is reportedly interrogating at the Armed Reserve Camp in Pathanamthitta. Police are likely to arrest Potty on Wednesday. 

 

A former junior priest at Sabarimala temple, Potty is accused of misappropriating gold by "sponsoring" the repair of the gold-plated Dwarapalaka idol coverings at the sanctum sanctorum of Sabarimala. His associate, Kalpesh, is the second accused in the case.

 

The Kerala High Court ordered a SIT probe after the Devaswom Vigilance found the materials handed over to Potty in 2019 together weighed 42.8kg, and that there was a shortfall of 4.54kg when they were returned after electroplating.

 

Potty, who doesn't have any legitimate source of income, offered to "sponsor" the repair of gold-plated sheets covering the Dwarapalaka idols and adjoining areas in 2019. The Devaswom authorities removed and entrusted 42,800 grams of copper sheets from the Dwarapalaka sculptures and adjoining corners to Potty that year.

 

According to the vigilance, the sheets were subsequently transported from Sabarimala to Bengaluru and later to Hyderabad, purportedly for repair work. They were finally delivered to Smart Creations, Chennai, on August 29, 2019, where only 394.9 grams of gold was reapplied as plating, while the remaining quantity was allegedly misappropriated, vigilance found.

 

Allegedly, Potty also took the valuable Dwarapalaka sculptures and copper sheets from the sanctum to various houses and temples in Chennai, Bengaluru, and Kerala, sans security, for ritual worship and profit-making purposes.

 

India