Sabarimala row: Why Kerala High Court broadened the scope of SIT investigation
On October 21, the Kerala High Court directed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Sabarimala gold theft case to expand its inquiry beyond the Dwarapalakas and side frames. The court asked the SIT to investigate the larger conspiracy and identify the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) officials who may have helped cover up the gold misappropriation from the temple’s gold-plated artefacts.
Notably, the court also asked the SIT to examine whether entrusting the Dwarapalakas to controversial figure Unnikrishnan Potty in 2025 was part of a broader attempt to suppress a 2019 theft. Here are the reasons for the court’s decision to broaden the scope of the investigation.
Back in 2019, it was in a dubious deal approved by the TDB—the autonomous body managing 1,252 temples, including Sabarimala—that the gold-plated copper coverings of the Dwarapalaka idols at the entrance of the temple’s sanctum sanctorum were handed over to Unnikrishnan Potty to “fix” them.
According to the SIT, Potty is suspected of misappropriating about two kilograms of gold from Sabarimala under the pretext of repair work. The SIT also suspects that Potty transported the Dwarapalaka idol coverings to temples and houses in Chennai, Bengaluru, and Kerala, and solicited donations from devotees using them.
In September this year, the TDB once again handed over the coverings to Potty for another round of “repairs”. Following this, the Special Commissioner submitted a report, based on which the court ordered the formation of the SIT to investigate the case.
The current TDB president, P. S. Prashant, has maintained that the Board’s actions in 2025 were carried out in compliance with rules and transparency, though he acknowledged procedural errors in the 2019 handover. However, the court expands the scope of the investigation to the 2025 actions, too.
The court noted that in relation to the 2019 deal, perfunctory mahazars were prepared when the gold was entrusted to Potty, and even though TDB officials were aware of the irregularities, they remained silent and concealed the misconduct.
The High Court further observed that in 2024, serious damage and removal of gold plating had been recorded by the Devaswom Commissioner and Devaswom Smith, despite the articles carrying a forty-year warranty. The court raised the suspicion that this may have motivated TDB officials to secretly re-entrust the idols to Potty in 2025, in an apparent attempt to conceal the 2019 pilferage.
In July this year, the Devaswom Commissioner had stated that Smart Creations, Chennai—which carried out the electroplating work—lacked the required technical expertise and that the work should be done only through traditional methods. However, he reversed his stance within seven days. Subsequently, the Thiruvabharanam Commissioner referred to directions from the TDB president to expedite the gold-plating work as proposed by Potty. Thereafter, the Board handed over the Dwarapalakas and Thangu Peedams to him.
The court also noted that in October 2024, Potty informed the Board that another set of Dwarapalakas had been kept in the strong room and suggested handing it over to reduce costs.
“The sequence of events unmistakably indicates that the TDB officials consciously attempted to hand over the gold-clad Dwarapalakas to Mr Unnikrishnan Potty in 2025 to suppress the earlier gold pilferage,” the court observed, adding that these developments explain why the TDB did not seek permission from the Sabarimala Special Commissioner for the removal of the Dwarapalaka idol coverings, despite a binding High Court order.
India