"Whoever is guilty must be brought before law": Devaswom Minister Vasavan on Sabarimala gold 'theft' case

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], October 17 (ANI): Kerala Devaswom Minister VN Vasavan on Friday said that whoever is guilty in the Sabarimala gold theft case must be brought to book. He also slammed the Opposition parties in the State, alleging that they are only interested in politicising the issue, but not in ensuring that the real culprits are punished.
The Minister's remarks followed the arrest by the Kerala High Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the prime accused in the Sabarimala gold theft case, Unnikrishnan Potti, and his remand to police custody until October 30.
"Questioning will naturally continue. Everything is in accordance with the court's decisions, and that is welcome. Let the investigation proceed thoroughly and bring out all facts; that is what we all desire. The arrest was made yesterday, and the accused was produced in court," Vasavan told reporters.
"Further questioning was necessary, which is why the police took him into custody. We can wait until the investigation is fully completed," he added.
The Minister stated that the State government's goal was to ensure that a single piece of gold from Sabarimala would not be lost.
"There is no delay in the process. The SIT was formed and acted swiftly. The charge was taken on October 11, and now it is October 17; everything has proceeded promptly within six days. The court is overseeing the investigation. It is not appropriate for anyone to interfere or make statements in between. The opposition wants this matter to be public for political reasons, not to catch the culprits. Our real goal is that not a single piece of gold from Sabarimala is lost. Whoever is guilty must be brought before the law," he said.
"The court has issued important orders regarding this, which we welcome. The SIT is a well-structured team, and all facts will emerge transparently. People have full faith in the investigation so far. All culprits will be brought to justice, and the stolen gold must be returned to Sabarimala. We are not responding to political accusations. The government has no crisis and remains open-minded. Let anyone come forward; let the investigation proceed," he added.
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 timeframe to respond.
"In today's Board meeting, it was decided to suspend Assistant Engineer K Sunil Kumar, who is under investigation. Retired officers involved will receive show-cause notices and must respond within 10 days. Further action will be taken as per the rules after receiving their explanations," Prasanth told reporters.
The decision was made following a board meeting held on Tuesday. Referring to the 2019 incident, Prasanth said that the Kerala government, along with the Devaswom Board, has a clear stance that lost property must be recovered and culprits must be punished. He further stated that "protest against the Devaswom Board and attacks on employees" was regrettable since the Board was moving while upholding all rituals and traditions. (ANI)