Ex-Sabarimala Official Arrested In Temple Heist, Recorded Gold As "Copper"

Former Travancore Devaswom Board executive officer, Sudheesh Kumar, has been arrested in connection with the Sabarimala gold theft case. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) officers took him into custody on Thursday evening and recorded his arrest after detailed questioning.

Investigators found that Sudheesh Kumar falsely recorded the gold-plated layers on the gatekeeper sculptures as "copper layers" in official documents, despite knowing they were made of gold. The SIT concluded that he helped the prime accused, Unnikrishnan Potti, steal the gold by tampering with the mahasar (official record).

As the Sabarimala executive officer in 2019, Sudheesh approved Unnikrishnan Potti as a sponsor and recommended that the Devaswom Board accept him by misrepresenting the material as copper sheets. Even when officials tampered with the sculptures, Sudheesh continued to describe them as copper in the records.

The SIT recovered evidence showing that although Potti never received the sheets, Sudheesh wrote his name in the records.

Investigators also found that Sudheesh assisted another accused, Murari Babu, in the gold theft.

The SIT will produce Sudheesh Kumar before the Ranni court on Saturday and is likely to seek his custody again for further interrogation.