Sabarimala gold theft: Ex TDB chief PS Prasanth named as accused besides Tantri, Potti, Murari Babu

Kochi: The then Devaswom Board administrative committee and the Tantri (head priest) have been implicated in a massive corruption scandal involving the gold-plating of the Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) idols at Sabarimala. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) has submitted a report containing crucial findings to the High Court regarding the gold theft that took place in 2025.

The late former Executive Officer, Murari Babu, has been named as the prime accused in the case. Alongside him, the list of accused includes former Travancore Devaswom Board president P S Prasanth, Sabarimala Tantri Kandararu Rajeevaru, sponsor Unnikrishnan Potti, owner of Chennai-based Smart Creations Pankaj Bhandari, Devaswom Board member Adv A Ajikumar and Thiruvabharanam Commissioner Rejilal.

The SIT's most important finding is that the Dwarapalaka idols were taken for gold-plating again in 2025 solely to cover up large-scale irregularities that occurred during a previous gold-plating process in 2019. The investigation report explicitly states that this was a deliberate move to ensure earlier instances of corruption did not come to light. The idols were dismantled and transported for re-plating specifically to conceal the fraud.

The investigation team discovered that this criminal conspiracy had commenced as early as 2023. Following the induction of the new Devaswom Board in 2023, efforts toward this plan were initiated by Unnikrishnan Potti. The report notes that the transportation of the Dwarapalaka idols to Smart Creations in Chennai was part of this precise strategy.

The administrative committee led by P S Prasanth granted permission to dismantle and transport the idols to Chennai despite being fully aware that doing so violated the Devaswom Manual. The SIT informed the court that the committee and the Tantri colluded in this irregular move with complete knowledge, despite knowing it breached manual regulations.

The investigation also found that the 40-year warranty claimed by the accused regarding the gold-plating was entirely fabricated. The report states that this warranty document was created as a smoke-screen to hide the 2019 scam. They had made fraudulent claims in collusion with the Chennai-based firm.

Two cases, numbered 3700 and 3701, have been registered in connection with the Sabarimala gold theft. The investigation team informed the High Court that the probe into crime number 3701, which primarily focuses on the fraud involving the Dwarapalaka idols, is complete and the charge sheet is ready.

Although the investigation is concluded, the submission of the final charge sheet in court requires the verification report from the central laboratory. The SIT intends to file the charge sheet as soon as the review of these laboratory reports is completed.