Sabarimala gold theft: Kerala High Court grants SIT six more weeks to complete probe

The Kerala High Court on Wednesday granted six more weeks to the SIT constituted by it to complete the probe into the irregularities in gold plating of the ‘Dwarapalaka’ idols and Sreekovil door frames of the Sabarimala Lord Ayyappa temple.

A bench of justices Raja Vijayaraghavan V and KV Jayakumar asked the SIT to proceed with the probe “with uncompromising meticulousness, heightened diligence, and scrupulous adherence to every legal requirement”.

The bench said that if the Special Investigation Team (SIT), in the course of the investigation, stumbled upon any facet, transaction, or material circumstance, which went unnoticed or undiscovered till now, the same should be forthwith brought to the court’s notice by filing an appropriate report.

“This direction has become imperative, as the subject matter of the investigation concerns valuables and properties belonging to Lord Ayyappa, and it is the duty of this court to ensure that such sacred property is duly protected and safeguarded,” it said. The court also expressed satisfaction with the manner in which the SIT was carrying out its probe. The bench further said that in compliance with its directions issued on November 5, the SIT had collected samples from the gold-plated artefacts in the shrine, but the analysis reports have not yet been received. The SIT told the court that the forensic analysis report is expected in a week.

The team also told the bench that the probe, with regard to the transactions of 2018 and 2019 relating to the main door of the Sreekovil and the subsequent series of transactions spanning 2014-2025 concerning the transportation of Dwarapalaka idols to Chennai for gold plating, was in its infancy.

In view of the “volume, complexity, and interconnected character of these transactions” and as only six weeks were granted to the SIT to complete its probe, it sought further time to complete the investigation.

The bench, after examining the progress report, said that in view of the “scale, seriousness, and potential ramifications of the allegations under inquiry”, the time sought by the SIT was “justified and deserves to be granted”. “Accordingly, a further period of six weeks from today is granted to the Special Investigation Team to conclude the investigation,” the court said. With the direction, the bench listed the matter for further consideration on January 5, 2026.

The order came in a writ petition initiated by the court on its own to monitor the probe into the irregularities. After the registration of the writ petition, the court closed the earlier litigation initiated by it in connection with the taking of the Dwarapalaka idols to Chennai for gold plating without informing the High Court or the Devaswom Special Commissioner.