Key Points

Leader of the Opposition VD Satheesan, on Thursday, while speaking in the assembly, accused Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan of body-shaming their member and stated that they have been continuing the non-cooperation protest for the past three days.

"We have been continuing the non cooperation protest for the past three days. The Chief Minister body shamed our member. The Speaker is not acting impartially. The Speaker should not try to intimidate us using the watch and ward," Satheesan said.

Earlier on October 7, the Travancore Devaswom Board suspended B. Murari Babu, Deputy Devaswom Commissioner, Haripad, in connection with an alleged false report related to the Sabarimala gold plating project.

According to the Board, the incident dates back to June 17, 2019, when Murari Babu was serving as the Administrative Officer at Sabarimala. He reportedly submitted a report to the Sabarimala Executive Officer in which the gold-plated Dwarapalaka idols located on either side of the sanctum sanctorum (Sreekovil) were incorrectly recorded as copper sheets.

The Board termed this a serious administrative lapse and has placed the officer under suspension pending a detailed inquiry.

Meanwhile, VD Satheesan alleged that the State government and the Devaswom Board are involved in the Sabarimala gold theft case.

Speaking with the reporters, VD Satheesan questioned why the Devaswom Board has not initiated proceedings against Unnikrishnan Potty, a former helper and the sponsor of gold-plating works at the Sabarimala Ayyappa Temple.

"This is a shocking incident; the Devaswom Board knew about this in 2022 itself. But they were not ready to initiate a FIR or criminal proceedings against Unnikrishnan Potty. Why?... Why has the Devaswom Board not initiated criminal proceedings against Unnikrishnan Potty? So many officials, authorities, both in government and in the Devaswom Board, are involved in this theft," VD Satheesan said.

"We demanded the resignation of the Devaswom Board Minister and the board authorities. We will continue our strike inside and outside the assembly," he added.

On Monday, the Kerala High Court ordered the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the alleged theft of gold from Sabarimala temple, while also directing that the investigation be confidential and no information be leaked.

The investigation will be led by former Superintendent of Police S Sasidharan and overseen by Crime Branch chief Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) H Venkatesh. The team will consist of three inspectors, including cyber experts.

- ANI