THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The copper plate inscriptions pertaining to the Sabarimala temple in the possession of fake antique dealer Monson Mavunkal are not original, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan informed the Assembly on Monday. He was replying to a question by Opposition Leader VD Satheesan.
"It is almost clear that the inscriptions pertaining to the rituals and customs are fake. The government has never claimed it to be original," the chief minister said.
"At present, an investigation is underway. Effective steps will be taken on the basis of the findings in the investigation," he said.
Satheesan's question was whether the government would take steps against the CPM mouthpiece "Deshabhimani" which had published a report featuring it as a genuine inscription. The chief minister said the Crime Branch investigation will cover the motives of the prominent persons who had links with Monson. The probe will check whether they had a role in the fraudulent activities of Monson, he said.
The CM said it was unclear to establish why former state police chief Loknath Behera visited Monson at his house. After his visit, Behera had some doubts and asked the Intelligence to launch a probe against Monson. Based on the Intelligence report, he wrote a letter to the Enforcement Directorate seeking a probe against Monson. The CM said the police protection given to Monson's 'antique' collection will be probed.