‘What was TDB doing?’: Kerala HC raps Devaswom board in Sabarimala gold case

Coming down heavily on the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB), the Kerala High Court on Monday asked what role the board played, if all major responsibilities were entrusted to businessman Unnikrishnan Potti, the prime accused in the alleged misappropriation of gold from the Sabarimala temple.

A single Bench of Justice A. Badharudeen was hearing arguments by the prosecution that the gold plating of, among others, the door frames and that of the Dwarapalaka idols, were entrusted to him. The court wondered why such important works were entrusted to a single individual.

The court was hearing bail pleas by former TDB president A. Padmakumar, Bellary-based gold merchant Govardhan and former executive officer of Sabarimala Murari Babu, who had been arraigned as accused in the case.

Mr. Govardhan said he “had been in prison for 25 days, although he spent ₹1.40 crore” (from his own pocket) for different works in Sabarimala.

The SIT probing the case opposed the bail pleas, stating that their continuous custody was needed since they had “a major role to play” in the alleged misappropriation of gold from the temple.