The Kerala High Court has sought an explanation from the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) on the continued retention of two senior officials while considering alleged irregularities in the procurement of Ashtabhishekam pooja materials at the Sabarimala temple on Friday (June 19, 2026).
The two officials were associated with the procurement of the pooja materials, which is under the court’s scrutiny.
The court directed the Board to explain the various postings held by O.G. Biju and S. Sreenivas over the years. Mr. Biju served as Administrative Officer, Sabarimala, from 2023 to 2024 and subsequently held the posts of Vigilance Officer, Deputy Devaswom Commissioner (Inspection) and Deputy Devaswom Commissioner (Digitisation). He has been serving as Executive Officer, Sabarimala, since August 2025.
Mr. Sreenivas served as Main Store Superintendent in the Sabarimala Executive Office from 2022 to 2024. He then worked as Assistant Audit Officer at Mavelikkara for eight months before being transferred back to Sabarimala as Assistant Executive Officer. He has been serving as Administrative Officer, Sabarimala, since August 2025.
The High Court had earlier mandated that officials appointed to the administration of the Sabarimala temple should not serve for more than one year.
The court also granted the Board time to furnish details of the independent auditor whose services had been engaged to assess transactions related to the procurement of pooja materials over the past 10 years. It further directed the Audit department to specify the methodology to be adopted for auditing records covering the period.
Published – June 20, 2026 01:21 am IST
