Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], January 19 (ANI): Socio-Religious organisation Sabarimala Karma Samithi held a protest outside Kerala Secretariat, demanding a CBI probe into the Sabarimala gold theft on Monday.

The International Working President of the Vishva Hindu Parishad, Alok Kumar, also participated in the protest.

National Vice Chairman of the Sabarimala Karma Samithy, SJR Kumar, alleged deliberate destruction of Sabarimala and the Hindu religion. He further asserted that an investigation into the Sabarimala gold theft should be handed over to either the CBI or some other independent agency.

'People are bent upon destroying Sabarimala and Hindu religion... We are getting many reports about how the Devaswom Board is managing its temples... The SIT is formed by the Kerala police... It has to be handed over to the CBI or some other independent agency...' Kumar told ANI.

These protests are being held in the wake of the arrest of former Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) member KP Sankaradas, who was detained by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) in connection with the Sabarimala gold theft case.

The arrest was formally recorded at the private hospital where he has been undergoing treatment for the past few days. According to police sources, the Kollam Vigilance Court was informed of the arrest.

Later, he was remanded by a judge of the Kollam Vigilance Court. The remand order was issued after the judge visited a private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram, where Shankaradas is currently undergoing treatment.

The Special Investigation Team (SIT) will shift him from the private hospital to the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Hospital for further medical care and custody.

Shankaradas had served on the administrative committee of the Travancore Devaswom Board during the tenure of former TDB president A Padmakumar, who was earlier arrested in the case. Investigators believe decisions taken during this period are central to the alleged irregularities linked to the disappearance of gold meant for the Sabarimala temple.

However, Kerala BJP President Rajeev Chandrasekhar slammed Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan over the Sabarimala gold theft case, accusing him of trying to cover up the scandal.

Speaking during a press conference, Chandrasekhar claimed that Vijayan's initial response to the scam was to downplay it as a 'slip-up' and hoped that the Special Investigation Team (SIT), which reports to him, would help bury the issue.

Questioning the impartiality of the SIT, Chandrashekhar said 'When the Sabarimala scam first came out, our Chief Minister's first response to it, he said it is a slip-up... He was hoping that the SIT, which is the Kerala police, which reports to him, would help him put this under the carpet. This is the single-handedly effort of media and the BJP-NDA to prevent him from putting this under carpet. The Home Minister himself, when he came to Trivandrum, challenged the Chief Minister, if you are sincerely interested in finding out the truth about your own ministers, how can your police investigate it?...'

The Sabarimala gold theft case concerns allegations of the misappropriation of approximately 4.54 kilograms of gold from sacred temple artefacts, including the Sreekovil (sanctum sanctorum) door frames and Dwarapalaka idols.

The alleged theft took place in 2019 under the pretext of refinishing and re-gold-plating temple structures. The controversy traces its origins to a 1998 donation by industrialist Vijay Mallya, who had gifted 30.3 kilograms of gold and 1,900 kilograms of copper for gold plating and cladding work at the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple. Subsequent inspections and court-monitored inquiries revealed discrepancies between the donated gold and the quantity allegedly used.

The case has also sparked political controversy, with Union Home Minister Amit Shah demanding that the probe be handed over to a neutral agency, alleging the involvement of senior Kerala ministers and questioning the state government's handling of the investigation. (ANI)