Former Kerala Devaswom Minister V N Vasavan on Friday alleged that the government's decision to appoint a lawyer who had represented some of the accused in the Sabarimala gold loss cases as the Devaswom's Special Pleader was an attempt to "sabotage" the ongoing investigation.
Vasavan was referring to cases related to the alleged misappropriation of gold from the copper plates of the Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) idols and the doors of the Sreekovil (sanctum sanctorum) of the Lord Ayyappa shrine.
Earlier, a report quoting senior Law Department officials said that the Kerala government had decided to appoint a Special Government Pleader for cases related to the Devaswom Boards and temples. The move was made after considering the opinion of Devaswom Minister K Muralidharan, the report added.
Speaking to reporters in Kottayam, Vasavan said lawyer KP Pradeep had not only appeared for accused Govardhan and Pankaj Bhandari in the gold loss cases but had also represented Smart Creations, the company entrusted with the gold-plating work, before the Kerala High Court.
Vasavan further alleged that a new post, which did not exist earlier, had been created specifically for Pradeep and that the move was intended to prevent the alleged role of Congress leaders in the Sabarimala gold loss case from coming to light.
He also claimed that the Congress had yet to explain why Unnikrishnan Potty, the main accused in the case, had met senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi at her residence in Delhi.
Responding to the allegations, Muralidharan said Pradeep's appointment was made in accordance with a Cabinet decision and that he had left the matter entirely to the discretion of Chief Minister V D Satheesan.
The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the cases is yet to file its chargesheet.
Last month, the SIT informed the Kerala High Court that the involvement of persons connected with the removal of the gold-clad copper plates of the Dwarapalakas in September 2025 could be determined only after receiving the analysis report of the gold samples.
According to the SIT, one of the main reasons for the delay in completing the investigation is the non-receipt of the detailed analysis report from the National Metallurgical Laboratory (NML) in Jamshedpur, where around 36 samples have been sent for scientific examination.
(With inputs from PTI)
