Kerala BJP delegation meets President Droupadi Murmu, apprises Sabarimala gold 'theft' incident

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], October 21 (ANI): A BJP delegation led by the party's Kerala President Rajeev Chandrasekhar met President Droupadi Murmu at Raj Bhavan in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday and apprised the President of public concerns regarding issues, including the Sabarimala gold theft incident, said a release issued by the party.
Along with Rajeev Chandrasekhar, former Governor and BJP National Executive Committee member Kummanam Rajasekharan, former Union Minister V. Muraleedharan, former State President K. Surendran, State General Secretary Adv. S. Suresh, and former DGP and BJP State Vice President R. Sreelekha were part of the delegation.
The delegation also presented a replica of the Anantha Padmanabhaswamy Temple to the President.
Earlier, on October 17, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) appointed by the Kerala High Court arrested Unnikrishnan Potti, the prime accused in the Sabarimala gold theft case.
Unnikrishnan Potti's arrest pertains to the theft of gold plating from the sanctum's wooden panels and the Dwarapalaka (door guardian) sculptures at Sabarimala temple.
Potti has been remanded to police custody until October 30
Earlier, the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) president, P.S. Prasanth, suspended Assistant Engineer K Sunil Kumar for his alleged involvement in the Sabarimala gold theft case. Kumar has been named as an accused in the case.
Prasanth stated that retired officers involved in the gold-plating controversy will receive a show-cause notice, with a 10-day time frame to respond.
Meanwhile, Prasad E.D. has been selected as the new Melsanthi (chief priest) of the Sabarimala Temple, while Manu Namboothiri M.G has been chosen as the Melsanthi of Malikappuram Temple, according to the Travancore Devaswom Board release.
As per the release statement, the selection took place through a traditional draw of lots (narukkueduppu) conducted after the Usha Pooja at the Sannidhanam on the first day of the Malayalam month Thulam.
The newly appointed Sabarimala Melsanthi, Prasad E.D, hails from Vasupuram, Mattathurkun, Chalakudy in Thrissur district. The newly appointed Malikappuram Melsanthi, Manu Namboothiri M.G., is a native of Ayiratheng, Kottikkada, Mayyanad in Kollam district.
The draw of lots was conducted under the supervision of Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) President Adv. P.S. Prasanth, Sabarimala Special Commissioner R. Jayakrishnan, High Court Observer T.R. Ramachandran Nair, and Devaswom Commissioner B. Sunilkumar.
In the ceremonial draw, Kashyap Varma, a young boy, drew the lot for the Sabarimala Melsanthi, while Maithili R. Varma, a young girl, drew the lot for the Malikappuram Melsanthi. (ANI)