Key Points

Speaking to ANI, Govindan Master said that the Kerala government will not protect the person responsible for the missing gold plating.

He said, "If anyone has stolen even a single bit of gold belonging to Lord Ayyappa at Sabarimala, they must be caught, no matter who they are. Neither the CPI(M) nor the government will protect anyone under any circumstances. The person responsible will be identified, brought to justice, and punished."

Further, the CPI(M) leader criticised the petition against the Global Ayyappa Summit in the High Court and the apex court.

"The special investigation team appointed by the court will submit its report within two weeks. The investigation will reveal who was behind it. Some people approached the High Court and the Supreme Court against the Global Ayyappa Summit organised by the government. When the courts rejected their plea, a group began discussing how to sabotage the summit. That too will be exposed in the investigation," he said.

MV Govindan Master slammed the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for sloganeering against the Devaswom Minister VN Vasavan and the Devaswom Board.

He said that the Opposition is opposing Vasavan for "political reasons".

He said, "Just days before the summit, the main accused in this case used some media they could influence to create a story. The complaint was filed in a planned manner. The UDF and the BJP are raising slogans against the Devaswom Minister and the Devaswom Board purely for political reasons. The CPI(M) and the government will not yield to such pressure."

Earlier, Kerala Minister V. Sivankutty said that the Devaswom Board was an autonomous institution and the activities were conducted under the supervision of the High Court.

Sivankutty told ANI that strict action would be taken against anyone held responsible.

"The Devaswom Board is an autonomous institution. The government only has the authority to appoint the board members. Everything else is independently managed by the board itself. The activities of the Devaswom Board are conducted under the supervision of the High Court. A senior officer appointed by the High Court is stationed at Sabarimala, and that officer reports the daily affairs there directly to the High Court. If anyone is found to have committed any mistake, the government will take strict action without showing any favouritism," Sivankutty said.

The controversy comes after the investigators struggled to trace key records linked to the 30.3 kg of gold and 1,900 kg of copper donated by the industrialist Vijay Mallya in 1998 for cladding the sanctum sanctorum and wooden carvings of the Sabrimala Ayyappa temple in Kerala.

- ANI