ALAPPUZHA: SNDP Yogam general secretary and prominent Ezhava community leader Vellappally Natesan has alleged the presence of “secret groups” extorting money from wealthy devotees in temples managed by Kerala’s Devaswom Boards. In a hard-hitting editorial in Yoganadam, the SNDP mouthpiece, Natesan said devaswom employees and middlemen were part of such rackets and accused the boards of large-scale mismanagement and lack of transparency in handling temple assets.
Without naming any specific temple or board, his remarks gain significance amid the ongoing gold-plating controversy at Sabarimala, involving the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB). The Kerala High Court recently ordered a probe after a missing Dwarapalaka pedestal was found at a relative’s house of the businessman who sponsored the gold-plating work.
Natesan alleged that invaluable assets, including gold donated by industrialist Vijay Mallya to Sabarimala, were reportedly unaccounted for and said similar irregularities exist in temples like Guruvayoor, Chottanikkara, Eattumanoor, Vaikom, and Tripunithura.
He urged the government to end political appointments in devaswom boards, bring professionalism to temple administration, and appoint IAS officers to ensure transparency. Temple assets, he said, should be utilised for the welfare of devotees and national development.
Meanwhile, UDF convenor Adoor Prakash demanded a central agency probe into the Sabarimala gold-plating row, while the TDB said it would approach the Kerala High Court seeking a comprehensive investigation into all related allegations since 1998.
