Sabarimala gold case: Former TDB president and CPI(M) leader A Padmakumar arrested

In a major development in the Sabarimala gold theft case, former Travancore Devaswom Board president A Padmakumar has been arrested on Thursday (November 20) after several hours of questioning at the Crime Branch headquarters in Thiruvananthapuram. The interrogation was led by ADGP H Venkitesh, who heads the Special Investigation Team probing the case.

Another former TDB president, N Vasu, already taken into custody earlier this week, was also questioned alongside Padmakumar.

Investigators are examining the alleged roles of both former officials in the disappearance of gold used for covering ornamental structures at the Sabarimala temple.

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Speaking to the press on Thursday (November 20), police officials noted that Padmakumar was the TDB president in 2019, when the board considered a proposal to hand over the gold-clad copper plates of the Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) idols and the Sreekovil (sanctum sanctorum) door frames to prime accused Unnikrishnan Potty for electroplating.

Padmakumar's stance

Padmakumar has maintained that he was not the board president when the gold-clad plates were actually handed over to Potty. However, SIT questioned him since the proposal for electroplating was processed during his tenure.

Officials said Padmakumar hadd been asked to appear for questioning twice this month but had sought more time. However, he turned up for interrogation when a fresh notice was issued recently, an officer said.

Padmakumar, a former Konni MLA, is currently a district committee member of the CPI(M). He is a prominent CPI(M) leader from Pathanamthitta district. He has been at slightly odds with the party leadership, after openly expressing his disappointment over the inclusion of Kerala health minister Veena George, a junior leader, in the state committee as a special invitee. He had posted his criticism on this matter on Facebook but later he had deleted it.

Also Read: Sabarimala gold: SIT conducts scientific tests at hill shrine

Meanwhile, the Vigilance Court in Kollam on November 20 sent N Vasu, who succeeded Padmakumar as TDB president in 2019, to SIT custody until evening. The court's decision came after the SIT approached the court seeking his custody for a day for further interrogation. However, the court, after considering the plea, granted his custody until 4 pm.

BJP conducts protest

BJP workers staged a protest near the court when Vasu was produced, raising slogans against him and attempting to block the vehicle in which he was shifted from the court to the Crime Branch office.

Also Read: SIT arrests former Sabarimala EO Sudheesh Kumar in missing gold case

So far, the SIT has arrested five persons, including Potty and Vasu, in two cases related to lost gold from Dwarapalaka idols and Sreekovil door frames.

Sabarimala gold case

The Sabarimala case relates to the suspected loss gold sheets that were used for gold-plating parts of the temple, including the dwarapalaka idols, in 2019. The gold was sent to a Chennai-based firm for electroplating work, but investigators later found discrepancies in the weight of the gold returned.

After preliminary findings, the Crime Branch registered a case under various IPC sections and is now preparing to invoke provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act as well. Both Padmakumar and Vasu have been named accused in the FIR after the SIT found procedural lapses and possible misconduct during the execution of the gold-plating project.

A vigilance report had earlier flagged irregularities in documentation and accountability during the 2019 project, prompting a closer look at the decisions taken by the Devaswom Board leadership at the time.

Probe to intensify

The SIT is expected to intensify the probe in the coming days, with further arrests and detailed financial audits likely as investigators trace the missing gold and examine procurement and contracting processes linked to the project.