Sabarimala gold case: Kerala Devaswom Minister seeks withdrawal of TDB circular appointing officials facing probe

Kerala Devaswom Minister K. Muraleedharan on Monday said he had asked the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) to withdraw a recent circular appointing officials facing probe in the Sabarimala gold loss case to key positions in the board.

Speaking to reporters in Guruvayur, Mr. Muraleedharan said he had written to TDB president K. Jayakumar on Saturday seeking withdrawal of the circular.

“The board has independent powers and the government cannot directly interfere in its decisions. Even then, I have demanded that the circular appointing people facing investigation in the Sabarimala gold loss case to key posts be withdrawn,” he said.

Mr. Muraleedharan said he believed Mr. Jayakumar, though appointed by the previous LDF government, was functioning impartially.

“If the circular is not corrected, the State government will assume that the current board also has involvement in the gold loss incident,” he said.

The Minister said the Devaswom department could decide on further action in the gold loss case only after the special investigation team (SIT) files its chargesheets in the two cases.

The SIT is yet to file chargesheets in two cases related to the alleged gold loss, he said.

“If flaws are found in the chargesheets, the Cabinet will decide on further investigations,” Mr. Muraleedharan said.

“We will intervene if the findings in the chargesheets are not satisfactory,” he said.

He also said more revelations regarding Sabarimala were likely to emerge.

“Former Devaswom Minister V N Vasavan himself has said that more revelations are to come. When new revelations emerge, investigations will be conducted based on them,” he said.

Mr. Vasavan had recently indicated that more disclosures could surface following reports that former TDB president and former MLA A. Padmakumar was writing a book detailing alleged irregularities related to the temple and the entry of two women there following the Supreme Court verdict.

Meanwhile, Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala said media reports regarding Mr. Padmakumar’s purported revelations did not warrant a fresh probe.

“Padmakumar is a prime accused in the Sabarimala gold loss case. If he makes any revelations, the SIT will examine whether they are relevant. There is no need for a fresh investigation,” Mr. Chennithala told reporters.

The Minister noted that Mr. Padmakumar, who was arrested by the SIT, had secured statutory bail after 90 days in custody.