Vigilance court denies bail to former TDB President Prasanth in Sabarimala gold loss case

A Vigilance court here on Saturday dismissed the bail petition filed by former TDB president P S Prasanth, while granting bail to former board member A Ajikumar in a case related to the alleged loss of gold from Sabarimala temple.

Kollam Vigilance Court Judge Mohit C S denied bail to former Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) president Prasanth. 

However, considering Ajikumar's health condition, the court granted him bail.

Prasanth is the 17th and Ajikumar the 18th accused in the case related to the alleged loss of gold from the Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) idols at Sabarimala temple. Both were arrested by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) on July 23.

Prasanth headed the TDB from 2023 to 2025. He was formerly a Congress leader before associating with the CPI(M).

According to the remand report filed by the SIT, Prasanth, Ajikumar and another board member, G Sundaresan, had approved a Board decision in 2024 to undertake maintenance work on the Dwarapalaka sculpture panels at Sabarimala.

However, the work could not be undertaken that year as the Mandala-Makaravilakku pilgrimage season was approaching. 

The report said Thiruvabharanam Commissioner Rejilal assumed charge on January 24, 2025, and, on the instructions of then TDB president Prasanth, examined the relevant files.

According to the SIT, Rejilal found that the Board had issued an order on November 1, 2024, to electroplate the Dwarapalaka panels. 

A subsequent order dated November 6, 2024, excluded the then Thiruvabharanam Commissioner from the process due to his health issues and directed a clerk and a Devaswom smith to proceed with the work. 

However, no follow-up action was taken.

The report said Rejilal, aware that Smart Creations did not possess the technology to recover the existing gold coating from the Dwarapalaka panels and reuse the same gold for replating, submitted reports to the TDB Secretary on July 30 and August 8, 2025, recommending that the traditional method be adopted.

However, acting on Prasanth's instructions, Rejilal later sent a letter on August 25, 2025, stating that the panels could be sent to Smart Creations for gold plating, the report alleged.

The SIT said Rejilal subsequently requested that a Board-level discussion involving the Devaswom Commissioner, Law Officer and Executive Officer be convened to decide issues, including the schedule for the maintenance work.

Despite the Thiruvabharanam Commissioner's earlier recommendations, the Board, convened on September 2, 2025 under Prasanth's chairmanship, decided to entrust the work to Smart Creations, according to the SIT report.

The agency alleged that the decision was taken in violation of an order issued by the Sabarimala Special Commissioner on June 30, 2023, which required the Kerala High Court to be informed in advance through the Special Commissioner before undertaking maintenance work on valuable temple properties.

The SIT alleged that the decision was intended to prevent the facts relating to the alleged gold loss during the 2019 maintenance work, including the quantity of gold lost, the quality of the gold plating and the actual amount of gold used, from coming to light.

Prasanth is the third former TDB president to be arrested in connection with the probe into two Sabarimala gold loss cases.

The SIT, constituted following a direction of the Kerala High Court, is expected to file charge sheets in the two cases soon.

The agency is also expected to submit a report to the Kerala High Court on the progress of the probe next month.