The petitioner seeks criminal action against TDB officials for submitting a misleading affidavit. The BJP has demanded the resignation of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan over the alleged Sabarimala temple gold theft.
Kochi: A new petition has been submitted to the Kerala High Court alleging that the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) utilized its own funds to finance the Global Ayyappa Sangamam, contrary to its sworn statement that the program would be financed mainly through private donations and sponsorships. The TDB had previously submitted a sworn statement in response to multiple petitions that characterized the event as having political and commercial motivations disguised under the banner of religious devotion, tourism promotion, and secular activities. In its submission, the TDB maintained that the program’s financing came predominantly from corporate sponsors and voluntary donations. Subsequently, the Supreme Court declined to intervene in the dispute.
Fresh Allegations Spark Row
The fresh petition, filed by SJR Kumar, asserts that despite the TDB’s earlier claims, expenditures were actually disbursed straight from Devaswom treasury accounts. Kumar has attached documentation—allegedly an official directive from the Devaswom Commissioner—approving an upfront disbursement of Rs 3 crore from TDB accounts for infrastructure development related to the event. The petitioner contends that both the individual who executed the sworn statement on the TDB’s behalf and the Devaswom Commissioner should face criminal proceedings for submitting a misleading affidavit to the court.
He has requested the Court to exercise its authority under Section 340 of the Criminal Procedure Code (or Section 379 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita), which outlines procedures for initiating prosecution for showing contempt toward lawful authority of government officials, committing offenses against the administration of justice, and offenses concerning documents presented as evidence in legal proceedings.
BJP Seeks Pinarayi Vijayan’s Resignation
The Kerala unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) staged a protest outside Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s residence, demanding his resignation over the handling of the alleged Sabarimala temple gold theft case. Kerala BJP president Rajeev Chandrasekhar, addressing the protest, accused the CPI(M) government of overseeing a decade-long “reign of corruption” and claimed that multiple temples, including those in Calicut and Kozhikode, have reported missing gold.
He said, “It is becoming more and more obvious as the skeletons are tumbling out of the CPI(M) government’s closet. Over the last 10 years, the CPI(M) has presided over a reign of corruption that has not even hesitated to go in and steal from temples.” Chandrasekhar further recalled Vijayan’s 2016 remarks on accountability and shame, asserting that the Chief Minister should “resign if he had even an ounce of shame.”
BJP leader V Muraleedharan, who also attended the protest, criticized the CM for taking a “casual approach” to the issue. He demanded the dismissal of the TDB arguing that accountability rests with the board and the Devaswom Minister, VN Vasavan. In response, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan defended his government’s handling of the case, assuring that “no offender will be allowed to escape” and said that a special investigation team (SIT) has been appointed to ensure action is taken impartially. The Kerala Assembly witnessed protests from the opposition, which refused to cooperate with proceedings until the Devaswom Minister resigned. Travancore Devaswom Board President PS Prashanth confirmed that the Devaswom Vigilance would submit its investigation report on October 10 and denied any links between the board and Unnikrishnan Potti, who is at the center of the gold-plating controversy.