Sabarimala | Unnikrishnan Potty misappropriated 2 kg gold: SIT report
The court has sent Potty to the SIT’s custody until October 30. A case has been registered against 10 individuals, including Potty
Unnikrishnan Potty, the main accused in the Sabarimala gold missing case, misappropriated around two kilograms of gold from the Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) idols after sponsoring their electroplating in 2019, the SIT said in its remand report.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT) is probing the Sabarimala gold missing case. Investigation officer S Sasidharan filed the remand report before the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court in Ranni, Kerala, on Friday (October 17), when Potty was arrested and produced as part of the remand procedure.
Also read: Sabarimala gold row: SIT arrests prime accused Unnikrishnan Potty
The court has sent Potty to the SIT’s custody until October 30. As per the report, Potty, who worked as an assistant to the temple priest at Sabarimala between 2004 and 2008, was aware that the copper plates of the Dwarapalaka idols were clad in gold in 1998.
Potty’s intent to cheat
The report stated that Potty used this knowledge with the intent to cheat and gain financially, causing losses to the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB).
He allegedly filed an application to "repair" the Dwarapalaka idol plates, which contained about two kilograms of gold, in 2019.
Also read: Sabarimala missing gold signals deeper systemic flaws, says Aravind Subramanyam
The report said that after removing the plates, they were taken to multiple locations, including Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and finally to Smart Creations in Ambattur, Chennai.
"With the help of Smart Creations, the gold was removed from the gold-clad copper plates and illegally retrieved. To conceal this, only 394.9 grams of gold were replated. Later, these plates were displayed at various places against temple tradition before being returned to Sabarimala," the report stated.
Case against 10 individuals
It also noted that after misappropriating gold from the Dwarapalaka plates, Potty identified other donors for subsequent gold-plating work, but the donated gold was allegedly not fully used for the intended purpose.
The remand report further revealed that after the 2019 electroplating, the Dwarapalaka plates were taken to several houses and temples in Chennai, Bengaluru, and Kerala for poojas without any security arrangements.
On Potty’s arrest, the SIT said it had received information on Thursday that he might abscond. "When contacted, his phone was found switched off. As the court had set a deadline to complete the investigation, his interrogation was crucial. Hence, as directed, Crime Branch Dy SP Suresh Babu took Potty into custody from his residence at around noon on Thursday," the report said.
A case has been registered against 10 individuals, including Potty, under IPC Sections 403 (dishonest misappropriation of property), 406 (criminal breach of trust), 466 (forgery of public documents), and 467 (forgery of valuable security), the report stated.
(With agency inputs)