Sabarimala gold: Former TDB president Padmakumar's arrest only beginning, says UDF

Kochi, Nov 20 (PTI) The Congress-led UDF opposition on Thursday said that the arrest of former TDB president and CPI(M) leader A Padmakumar in connection with the Sabarimala 'gold loss' case was only the beginning, and that other top party leaders could soon face police action.

Leader of the Opposition in the state assembly, V D Satheesan, contended that there will soon be a "procession" of CPI(M) leaders being arrested in connection with the case.

He demanded that former Devaswom Minister Kadakampally Surendran also be questioned by the court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT), as the alleged irregularities occurred during his tenure.

Satheesan also alleged that even the current Devaswom Minister, V N Vasavan, was aware of the activities in Sabarimala, and that it was with his knowledge that the dwarapalaka (guardian deity) idols’ gold-clad copper plates were handed over to prime accused Unnikrishnan Potty.

Speaking to reporters at Paravur, he contended that if the Kerala High Court had not intervened, even the idol of Lord Ayyappa "might have been lost".

The opposition leader claimed that the irregularities in the Lord Ayyappa shrine occurred with the knowledge of the CPI(M) leadership, who must answer for them.

Similar allegations were made by Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) national general secretary P K Kunhalikutty, who questioned whether even a grain of gold remained in the Sabarimala shrine.

He also termed the alleged irregularities during Padmakumar’s tenure as TDB president "shocking" and said his arrest was an embarrassment for the CPI(M).

Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala said that former and current CPI(M) ministers could also face arrest in connection with the matter.

The BJP alleged that there was a "political hand" behind the irregularities.

BJP state chief Rajeev Chandrasekhar said the matter must be investigated, either by the SIT or central agencies. "If this government cannot protect the temples and devotees, then hand it over to the Narendra Modi government," he said.

On the other hand, CPI(M) state secretary M V Govindan said the party had no role in the matter and would not protect anyone brought before the law.

He also noted that Padmakumar has only been arrested and has not been declared guilty by the court.

"Let the process continue. Let it come before the court," he told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram.

Govindan added, "Not one grain of gold from Sabarimala can be stolen by anyone." Padmakumar was questioned at the crime branch office, after which his arrest was recorded in the afternoon, an official said.

He was the TDB president in 2019 when the board considered a proposal to hand over the gold-clad copper plates of the dwarapalaka idols and the Sreekovil door frames to prime accused Unnikrishnan Potty for electroplating.

Although Padmakumar maintained that he was not the board president when the gold-clad plates were actually handed over to Potty, the SIT contends that the proposal was processed during his tenure.

He is a senior CPI(M) leader in Pathanamthitta district and has represented the Konni constituency in the Kerala Legislative Assembly.

Apart from Padmakumar, the SIT has arrested five others, including prime accused Potty and former TDB president N Vasu, in two cases related to gold lost from dwarapalaka idols and sreekovil doorframes. PTI HMP SSK HMP SSK KH