Plundering Gods Gold is an art in Gods Own Country IT IS DOUBTFUL IF GOD’S GOLD WILL EVER COME BACK OR TOP OFFICIALS WILL GO BEHIND IRON BARS.

 

Back in history, invaders used to plunder temples; the Britishers were not far behind. But in this era, those in power seem to have got the genes of the invaders and the British. While the invaders openly looted the wealth of Gods, today, there are gangs – mainly protectors of temples -- who do the same by either subverting the system or through dubious means. In the forefront now is the case of looting of gold in the hill shrine of Sabarimala. The Sabarimala gold theft case, which left devotees and the public shell-shocked, came to the fore after a complaint regarding a missing gilded pedestal. This has now blown up into a major controversy -- lending credence to allegations of extensive loot in temples managed by devaswom boards nominated by the state government. The Kerala High Court has now directed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to thoroughly investigate the aspect of criminal conspiracy in the Sabarimala gold scam, observing that the chain of events seems to have commenced in 2019. The court has held that the investigation should extend to uncovering the larger conspiracy, identifying temple officials who may have colluded to conceal the misappropriation of gold from the Sabarimala temple. Sabarimala gold ‘theft’ case: Kerala SIT arrests prime accused Unnikrishnan Potti - The Hindu

THE BEGINNINGS

In 2019 certain gold-clad items were removed from the sanctum sanctorum for maintenance/re-plating. Responsibility for sponsoring/overseeing this work was assigned to a private sponsor, Unnikrishnan Potti -- a priest-turned-sponsor/businessman. Hand in glove with him was former Sabarimala administrative officer B Murari Babu. He intentionally mentioned the gold-plated sheets as copper sheets in Sabarimala records. He had also written to former Sabarimala executive officer D Sudheesh Kumar, recommending Potti to conduct electroplating of gold on the copper sheets of dwarapalaka idols and the sheets placed in the corners of the sanctum sanctorum. Potti and Murari Babu are now under arrest Investigations showed that when the gold clad items came back to the temple, the gold vanished and what remained was just copper plates in a few areas. In other idols, the gold weighed less and nobody knows where the metal vanished. According to reports, Potti pocketed the extra gold and made a deal with a person in Bellary in Karnataka. The SIT has said that around 2 kg of Sabarimala temple gold was stolen and replaced with bronze replicas. The report names Potti as the prime mover in the alleged conspiracy, assisted by nine others, including a gang from Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

INSIDE JOB

Potti, who worked as an assistant priest at Sabarimala between 2004 and 2008, is well-acquainted with the structure of the shrine and the work carried out, including the gold-plating done on the roof and surrounding structures in 1998. He reportedly misused this knowledge to gain access to gold-plated copper sheets and embellishments on the dwarapalaka idols and pillars on the northern and southern sides of the sanctum sanctorum. He allegedly colluded with other accused who were duty-bound to protect Devaswom property, and by violating TDB procedures and HC directives, managed to have the sheets removed on July 19 and 20, 2019. GOLD DONATION How did the gold get there in the first place? The best-known large donation came in 1998–1999 when businessman Vijay Mallya / UB Group donated gold for cladding parts of the Sreekovil (roof and fittings). Contemporary and later reports cite roughly 30–31 kg used for the roof and additional quantities for fittings/ frames. This 1998 work established the practice and baseline quantities that later investigators have referenced. Ironically, the complaint regarding the pedestal was filed by Unnikrishnan Potti, the main accused in the case. Investigators have now put together evidence that purportedly shows Potti’s role in replacing the gold cladding on the sculptures and doors at Sabarimala temple with gold-plated panels in 2019 and 2025.

MYSTERIOUS POTTI

 Once celebrated as a generous sponsor at Sabarimala and a familiar face among the temple’s inner circles, Unnikrishnan Potti now finds himself at the centre of one of the most sensational temple-related investigations in the state. Sabarimala gold theft probe hits roadblock as TDB withholds vital documents | Onmanorama | Kerala Once regarded as a respected priest, the first accused in the Sabarimala gold theft case now cuts a very different figure in public. When Potti was produced in court, he faced open hostility—shoes were hurled at him from the crowd. He told the media later, without naming anyone: “Those who trapped me will be revealed.” However, what began as a “devotee’s concern” soon took a stunning turn. Within days, the Devaswom Vigilance recovered the missing peedam from the house of Potti’s sister. That discovery unravelled a trail that eventually led investigators to what they allege is a larger operation involving theft and replacement of temple assets. On September 28, the day the idols were seized from his sister’s home, he admitted that the peedam had been taken by one of his aides “for maintenance”. “During Covid, my aide kept the peedam at his house. Since TDB did not ask for it, I forgot about it,” Potti had said. He added: “I have epilepsy, which causes memory lapses. I have been on eptoin and pregabalin for 25 years.” Now there is a clamour by devotees to probe allegations of corruption in other temples.

NO TRANSPARENCY

“There is no transparency in management of temple assets. Such loot cannot happen without the knowledge of devaswom employees, president and members. The offerings box of Sabarimala and Guruvayur receive valuables like gold, silver and diamond which are not accounted for,” former DGP Jacob Thomas, who was in charge of the vigilance department from 2014 to 2017, was quoted in the media. “It is a system where some politicians, who are non-believers, are managing the temple assets. Over a period of time all precious assets have been looted. There have been allegations that some temples use oil extracted from animal bones for burning lamps. This can cause cancer,” former DGP T P Senkumar, was quoted in the media. The High Court has now directed the SIT to examine every facet of the missing gold in Sabarimala and ascertain the role and complicity, if any, of each TDB officer, from the highest echelons downward. TDP presidents and higher officials have washed off their hands saying that the pilferage may have been done by some employees, But the High Court has pointed out that “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 were neither pilfered nor wasted.” Widening the enquiry, the court has directed the High Court registry to register a suo motu writ petition in the matter, making the state government, the principal secretary (revenue department), the secretary of the TDB, the chief vigilance and security officer (superintendent of police), the state police chief, and the state audit department as respondents. It is doubtful if God’s gold will ever come back or top officials will go behind iron bars.

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Courtesy: SHANKAR RAJ  and  Spade A Spade-,2025