&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Sabarimala gold theft case: SIT reaches temple to collect fresh sample for investigation")
The Special Investigation Team (SIT) on Thursday is probing the disappearance of gold from the Sabarimala temple after collecting fresh samples of artefacts for scientific analysis. The investigation was led by Superintendent of Police (SP) S Sasidharan, who arrived at Pampa base camp in the morning and advanced to Sannidhanam by afternoon.
The probe came after the Kerala High Court approved on Monday to collect new samples for examination. Based on the scheduled timing of the Sabarimala, the temple will be open for the monthly pooja at 5 pm on Thursday and close on February 17 at 10 pm. The SIT is likely to collect samples after the closure of the temple, following completion of various poojas at the Sannidhanam.
Donation of gold and theft in the temple
The Sabarimala gold theft case involves allegations that around 4.54 kilograms of gold were misappropriated from sacred temple assets, including the door frames of the Sreekovil (sanctum sanctorum) and the Dwarapalaka idols. The alleged theft took place in 2019, reportedly under the guise of refinishing and re-gold-plating temple structures, according to a report by the news agency ANI.
The controversy dates back to a 1998 contribution by industrialist Vijay Mallya, who donated 30.3 kilograms of gold and 1,900 kilograms of copper for gold plating and cladding at the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple. Later inspections and court-supervised investigations found inconsistencies between the amount of gold donated and the quantity claimed to have been used.
Earlier on the same day, former Devaswom Board president N Vasu was granted statutory bail and released from the Thiruvananthapuram Special Sub-Jail in connection with the case. He had spent 90 days in custody, and the bail was granted due to the charge sheet not being filed within the stipulated time.
Trending Stories
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
How fast can the Sukhoi Su-30 fighter jet really fly?
)
Did China ask its people 'not to respond to aliens'? Origin of bizarre claim on social media
)
MS Dhoni-CSK Fallout? Report claims failed stake sale talks triggered rift
)
Scientists reveal the SAFEST COUNTRY when catastrophe strikes the planet
)
Serial killer on the loose in South Korea's Jeju Island? Fourth body found in three days as more than a dozen people go missing
)
2/3rd of glacier detached, collapsed: ISRO satellite images reveal what triggered Nepal floods
)
Trump once again claims without him there would be ‘no Israel right now’
)
Foreign espionage attacks against German companies surge to 37%, Bitkom report reveals
)
Blake Lively wins partial legal fee from Justin Baldoni after $8M request
)
Why is Pakistan deploying Turkish Bayraktar TB2 drones near India border?
)
'OH MY GOD! We've found other agents!': Investigators discover not one or two, almost 700 OpenAI AI agents went rogue, hacked Hugging Face
)
Lunar eclipse 2026: India timings, places to see and more. August Blood moon factsheet
)
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on global outreach tour
)
Both pilots killed as training aircraft crashes in Lucknow – What we know
)
16-year-old charged with preparing terror attack on kindergarten in Norway
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
How the S-400 protects itself from enemy attacks
)
Nepal floods: Over 165 dead, 400 missing; US, India, China, World Bank mobilise aid
)
India's multi-layered watch: The new surveillance war
)
5 doomsday planes spotted in US skies hours after CIA director's secret trip to Russia
)
9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed to finally face trial in 2028, nearly 27 years after horrific attacks
)
Islamabad hospital fire: What we know about one of the biggest facility that housed Imran Khan
)
Workers run for life while filming Nepal flash flood: Scary new visuals emerge from Rasuwa
)
Russian military planes enter South Korean air defence zone amid rising tensions with North Korea: What's happening
)
Ron Weasley Is Back! Rupert Grint set to return to Harry Potter universe on Broadway
)
400-year-old 'vampire' grave in Poland reveals non-existent genetic lineage
)
Dolly Parton, global icon and queen of country music, dies at 80
)
Nepal flash floods: Kailash Mansarovar yatra affected, close to 400 pilgrims out of contact
)
'If he is dead, they're putting on a pretty good show': Trump casts fresh doubt over Mojtaba Khamenei's fate
)
Man arrested near US Capitol with guillotine in pickup truck: What happened?
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
Why the Su-30MKI cockpit is painted bright turquoise green
In addition, Vasu is the fifth accused to be released in the Sabarimala case, the third accused in the Dwarapalaka gold theft case, and the fifth in the Sreekovil threshold gold theft case.
