Kerala HC Directs SIT To Probe Into 'Larger Conspiracy' In Sabarimala Gold Theft Case

Last Updated:October 21, 2025, 20:30 IST

Kerala High Court orders SIT to probe a larger conspiracy in Sabarimala gold theft, implicating TDB officials and Unnikrishnan Potty in missing gold from Dwarapalaka idols.

Dedicated to Lord Ayyappa, the Sabarimala temple attracts millions of devotees from all over the world. (Image: keralatourism.org)

Sabarimala gold theft case: The Kerala High Court on Tuesday directed the Special Investigation Team (SIT), probing the loss of gold from Sabarimala Temple, to investigate whether a larger conspiracy was involved in the theft.

In its interim order, the High Court said that the SIT should look into a larger conspiracy, identify any Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) officials who helped hide the gold theft from the gold-plated plates, and determine if handing over the Dwarapalakas in 2025 was part of a plan to cover up the 2019 gold pilferage.

“The SIT shall examine every facet of the matter and ascertain the role and complicity, if any, of each officer of the TDB, from the highest echelons downwards. The higher officials of the Board cannot absolve themselves of responsibility or shift the blame onto subordinate officers, for each of them bore a collective duty to ensure that the sacred valuables of the deity was neither pilfered nor wasted," the order stated.

The High Court also expressed serious doubts about whether the returned Dwarapalakas were the same ones originally entrusted. It stated that the sequence of events clearly shows TDB officials deliberately tried to secretly hand over the gold-covered Dwarapalakas to accused Unnikrishnan Potty in 2025 to cover up an earlier gold theft. This is why they didn’t seek the Special Commissioner’s permission, even though it was required by a court order.

On Tuesday, the SIT head appeared before a bench of Justices Raja Vijayaraghavan and KV Jayakumar in in-camera proceedings and filed its first report in a sealed cover. The High Court, while assigning the case to the SIT, had directed the team to file a progress report within two weeks and set a six-week deadline to complete the investigation.

According to the preliminary investigation report, evidence suggests that a conspiracy was indeed behind the gold theft. It said that only a perfunctory mahazar was prepared and that none of the relevant particulars were entered in the registers.

“The Devaswom officials, despite being fully aware of the glaring irregularities and the possibility that the gold plates had been substituted, wilfully chose to remain silent, thereby concealing the act of misconduct on the part of both the officials and the sponsor," the HC observed.

The SIT has registered two separate FIRs and has arraigned 10 people as the accused, with sponsor Unnikrishnan Potti as the first accused.

According to the investigation progress report submitted to the High Court, the theft was meticulously planned based on calculations regarding the gold offerings, including the Dwarapalaka sculptures provided in 1998 by Vijay Mallya.

The Kerala High Court recently found that the gold-clad plates of the Dwarapalaka idols weighed 42.8 kg when handed over to Potti for electroplating, but the weight reduced to 38.2 kg when it was brought back to the temple.

The accused reportedly believed that replacing the gold with painted replicas would prevent detection.

The SIT informed the court that Potti has been arrested and was remanded to the custody of the SIT till October 30 and shifted to the Pathanamthitta police camp.

The case has been posted for November 11.

What’s The Case?

The alleged loss of weight of gold came to light during the Court’s intervention while considering a suo motu petition initiated on the basis of a report of the Special Commissioner stating that the Gold-cladded copper covering of the Dwarapalaka idols and the Peedam on which the idols were fixed, were removed without prior intimation to it.

Subsequently, a vigilance report highlighted lapses by Devaswom officials in connection with the gold loss, prompting the court to direct the SIT to register a criminal case and initiate a probe.

Following this, the SIT registered two cases related to missing gold from the plates of the Dwarapalaka idols and the Sreekovil (sanctum sanctorum) door frame, arraigning 10 people, including Bengaluru-based Unnikrishnan Potty and some Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) officials, as accused.

Potty, who had sponsored the electroplating of the gold-clad copper plates on the Dwarapalaka idols and Sreekovil door frames in 2019, was later arrested.

Neethu Reghukumar

Neethu Reghukumar, Principal Correspondent at CNN-News18, has 12 years of experience in both print and broadcast journalism. She covers politics, crime, health in Kerala, and has extensively reported on floods ...Read More

Neethu Reghukumar, Principal Correspondent at CNN-News18, has 12 years of experience in both print and broadcast journalism. She covers politics, crime, health in Kerala, and has extensively reported on floods ...

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