THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Before the dust could settle on the Sabarimala gold theft case, a similar controversy has hit the historic Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple. The State Police Chief has reported to the state government that gold bars and coins weighing around 78 grams went missing from the temple in “recent months”. Also missing from the repository were certain coveted artefacts of immense antique and religious value, including a multi-tiered gold lamp and the ‘Vaira Nama’ – a diamond-studded ornament kept in the sanctum sanctorum, the report stated.
Highly placed sources told TNIE that these “misses” could just be the tip of the iceberg and that several such incidents have occurred in the past, which were not even reported to the police.
One classic example of this mismanagement, according to sources, was the disappearance of “one of the 22 silver bowls used during religious ceremonies” in 2022. Known locally as ‘poovattaka’, the bowls were taken out for the Alpasi festival, but only 21 found their way back to the vault.
The matter was raised before the temple’s executive committee on November 7 that year. Surprisingly, the matter was never communicated to the police. Instead, the committee took a internal decision to replace the lost bowl with a replica made of silver, a source said. The next executive committee meeting held on December 2, 2022, was officially informed that the bowl had been replaced.
“There was no police complaint filed and hence no investigation took place. The culprit or culprits managed to escape easily. Though a third-party complaint was filed before the local police as well as the then Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, the police did not even register an FIR,” the source added.
Another ‘missing’ incident was reported on March 6, 2022, involving a silver chain that adorned the idol of Hanuman Swamy. The chain went missing by 8:30 PM and was duly reported to the guard commander. As the situation heated up, an intensive search was launched and the chain was eventually recovered from a waste bin near the south entrance. This incident too, sources said, was hushed up and not reported to the police despite being a suspected theft attempt.
The police chief’s report, which was filed before the Home Secretary on May 15, stated that the intelligence wing had flagged unauthorized and unchecked entry of people via the Chembakathumoodu entrance. This list included certain temple employees, security staff, and “associates of the royal family”, the report noted.
The report strongly recommended that all valuables should be documented properly and stored in a designated locker under strict police surveillance. Meanwhile, the temple executive officer rejected all the allegations.
“The treasures of Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple are safeguarded with the highest standards of security and reverence. The temple premises are under continuous CCTV surveillance managed by the temple security (police), and the movement of valuable articles, if required, is carried out only under due intimation to the security wing and in their presence,” the executive officer said in an official statement.
ലഘു വിവരണം
ശബരിമലയ്ക്ക് പിന്നാലെ ശ്രീ പത്മനാഭസ്വാമി ക്ഷേത്രത്തിലും സ്വർണ്ണക്കട്ടികളും വജ്രം പതിച്ച ‘വൈര നാമ’വും ഉൾപ്പെടെയുള്ള വിലപിടിപ്പുള്ള പുരാതന വസ്തുക്കൾ കാണാതായതായി പോലീസ് മേധാവി റിപ്പോർട്ട് നൽകി. മുൻപ് നടന്ന പല മോഷണശ്രമങ്ങളും അധികൃതർ പോലീസിനെ അറിയിക്കാതെ ഒതുക്കിത്തീർത്തതായും റിപ്പോർട്ടിൽ പരാമർശമുണ്ട്. എന്നാൽ ഈ ആരോപണങ്ങൾ പൂർണ്ണമായും അടിസ്ഥാനരഹിതമാണെന്ന് ക്ഷേത്ര എക്സിക്യൂട്ടീവ് ഓഫീസർ വ്യക്തമാക്കി.
(With inputs from MN)
For more details: Navamalayalam.com