Sabarimala Gold Theft Case: Court Grants One-Day SIT Custody of Former TDB President P.S. Prasanth and A. Ajikumar
Kollam: The Kollam Vigilance Court has granted the Special Investigation Team (SIT) one-day custody of former Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) president P.S. Prasanth and former board member A. Ajikumar in connection with the Sabarimala gold theft case.
The SIT had moved the court seeking custody to conduct detailed interrogation after uncovering crucial leads in the ongoing probe. The two accused, who were arrested on July 23, are currently lodged in a jail in Thiruvananthapuram.
Before being taken into custody, Prasanth and Ajikumar will undergo a medical examination at the Kollam District Hospital. They will then be taken to the Kollam Police Club, where the SIT plans to interrogate them together as part of its investigation.
According to the SIT, large-scale gold misappropriation allegedly took place during the 2024–25 tenure of the former Devaswom Board. Investigators have already seized several documents related to transactions carried out in 2025 from both the Sabarimala Sannidhanam and the Travancore Devaswom Board headquarters. Based on these records, the SIT has prepared a detailed questionnaire for the joint interrogation.
The investigation has also revealed that Prasanth allegedly ignored a written warning issued by the Superintendent of the Thiruvabharanam Commission Office, who had advised against sending the temple's gold-plated copper sheets outside for re-gilding.
In a letter issued in October 2024, the Superintendent had stated that all work related to the sacred ornaments should be carried out within the temple premises, citing provisions of the Devaswom Manual. The SIT alleges that these instructions were ignored and that the gold-plated copper sheets were later sent to Smart Creations, a Chennai-based firm, for re-gilding.
According to the investigation, the Devaswom Board under Prasanth's leadership in 2025 sent the gold-plated copper sheets to Smart Creations in an attempt to conceal the alleged gold theft that took place in 2019. The SIT has further alleged that the sheets were handed over for re-gilding without informing the Kerala High Court, despite the court's oversight of the entire process.
Meanwhile, the SIT's investigation has widened, delaying the filing of the comprehensive chargesheet as fresh evidence continues to emerge. Investigators have identified fresh irregularities in the 2025 transfer of the Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) gold panels and suspect that another instance of gold theft occurred during the transaction. Earlier findings indicated that gold had been extracted from four of the 12 panels sent to the Chennai-based firm.
The SIT is also expected to summon more individuals, including former head priests and Devaswom Board officials, for questioning as the investigation expands.
Meanwhile, Prasanth has once again maintained that he is innocent in the case. He alleged that the case is politically motivated and said innocent people should not be punished. His remarks came while he and Ajikumar were in judicial remand before being taken into SIT custody for detailed questioning.