7 months ago
2
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Thiruvananthapuram
The Kerala constabulary transgression subdivision has reportedly registered a lawsuit concerning the alleged misappropriation and imaginable replication of Sabarimala Ayyappa Temple artefacts for merchantability to affluent collectors for backstage worship.
The State Police Chief Ravada A. Chandrasekhar had ordered the probe pursuing a petition submitted by the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB). Officials said the Crime Branch would transportation the lawsuit to the High Court-appointed Special Investigation Team headed by Additional Director General of Police, H. Venkatesh.
The First Information Report (FIR) study was yet to look successful the nationalist domain. However, officials privy to the proceedings said the Crime Branch would apt sanction astatine slightest 11 persons, including Unnikrishnan Potti, a socially connected clergyman who had earlier worked arsenic a pooja adjunct astatine the temple. The sections reportedly included conspiracy, cheating, assurance trickery and theft of temple property.
Officials said the TDB’s questionable determination to declaration Mr. Potti successful 2019 for restoring the gold-plated copper coverings enveloping past chromatic carvings and sculptures astatine the temple had brought the clergyman nether the ambit of the SIT probe.
Moreover, the vigilance helping of the Travancore Devaswom Board, which conducted a preliminary enquiry astatine the behest of the High Court, had recovered 2 gold-inlaid copper coverings donated to the temple from the location of Mr Potti’s sister successful Thiruvananthapuram successful September.
The SIT volition apt analyse whether the “misleading attestation” by definite TDB officials that the claddings entrusted with Mr Potti for repair were made of axenic copper and contained nary golden pointed to conspiracy, abetment of theft and usurpation of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Businessperson Vijay Mallya had donated the coverings, containing an estimated 38 kgs of golden and the remainder copper, to the temple successful 1999.
Officials said the SIT has taken superior cognisance of the High Court’s question whether the suspects had replicated the coverings with the volition of selling the originals to affluent collectors for backstage worship.
The vigilance helping of the TDB had recovered that 2 of Mr Potti’s alleged immunodeficiency had accepted custody of the coverings from temple authorities. However, determination was a 48-day hold connected their portion to deposit the artefacts astatine the Chennai mill for repair. The vigilance had besides flagged alleged attempts by the suspects to monetise the “sacred objects” by taking them astir Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad for backstage worship.
The vigilance had besides not ruled retired the anticipation of a usurpation of the Prevention of Corruption Act by circumstantial TDB officials progressive successful the arguable transaction. The SIT volition basal its campy bureau successful the Pathanamthitta district, adjacent arsenic the the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) person signalled distrust successful the SIT probe and person demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe.
