The Kerala High Court criticized K.P. Sankaradas, a former Travancore Devaswom Board member, who is in custody for the Sabarimala gold misappropriation case. The Enforcement Directorate has expanded its investigation into an alleged money-laundering scheme involving temple assets. The court has ordered a medical board to evaluate Sankaradas’s health while he remains in jail.
Sankaradas, the 11th accused in the case, was placed in custody following a visit by a Kollam Vigilance Court judge to the hospital where he was being treated. The High Court expressed dissatisfaction with the delay in his arrest, noting his hospitalization was linked to his son being an IPS officer. Subsequently, the Special Investigation Team formally arrested him, and he was moved to the Medical College Hospital under jail custody.
The ED’s Kochi Zonal Office, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, conducted searches at 21 locations across Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka. The investigation, stemming from FIRs by the Kerala Police Crime Branch, revealed an alleged conspiracy involving TDB officials, former temple administrators, sponsors, and jewellers. Artefacts from the Sabarimala temple were falsely documented as “copper plates” and illicitly removed, with gold extraction taking place in private facilities.
Incriminating evidence, digital data, and a 100-gram gold bar were seized by the ED, along with freezing eight properties of the main suspect valued at around Rs 1.3 crore. The agency is actively pursuing the trail of illicit gains and identifying additional beneficiaries as the investigation progresses.
