Thiruvananthapuram:The Kerala High Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT), investigating the Sabarimala gold theft case, has expanded its inquiry to include the controversial Global Ayyappa Meet held at Pampa last year. The move has reportedly left several members of the Pinarayi Vijayan government feeling uneasy.

In its submission connected to the Sabarimala gold misappropriation case, the SIT has made specific references to the Global Ayyappa Meet, which took place during the tenure of P.S. Prasanth as president of the Travancore Devaswom Board.

The report highlights that there is no record in the Devaswom Board’s meeting minutes approving the decision to organise the event. It also points to ambiguities in how funds were utilised for the meet.

An audit report, which details a financial loss of Rs 3.4 crore to the Devaswom Board from the event, is expected to be presented to the High Court.

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The court had previously directed that not a single rupee should be drawn from either the government or the Devaswom Board to conduct the meet. Organisers had claimed that all expenses would be met entirely through sponsorship.

However, the Devaswom Minister, V.N. Vasavan, had publicly estimated the cost at around Rs 8 crore. It remains unclear whether the full amount was raised through sponsorship, despite his assurance that no public funds would be used.

The audit findings indicate that Rs 3.4 crore was withdrawn from the Board’s surplus funds, raising fresh legal and administrative questions.

The Devaswom Board has convened a meeting in response to the SIT’s observations.

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In a related development, the Vigilance Department is expected to formally request the return of files seized by the SIT from the Devaswom headquarters in connection with the Sabarimala flagstaff reconstruction case.

Key documents remain in the SIT’s custody, and officials say detailed scrutiny is required before further statements can be recorded.

Earlier findings had indicated procedural violations in accepting gold for the flagstaff reconstruction, including a failure to properly document donor details, adding another layer to the expanding investigation into Sabarimala-related financial management.

(IANS)