Minister seeks withdrawal of TDB circular appointing officials facing probe in Sabarimala gold case

GUruvayur , Kerala Devaswom government minister K Muraleedharan on mon said he had asked the TDB to take out a recent broadside appointing officials veneer probe in the Sabarimala gold loss case to key positions in the board.Speaking to reporters here, Muraleedharan said he had written to Travancore Devaswom Board president K Jayakumar on Saturday seeking withdrawal of the circular."The board has independent powers and the government cannot directly interfere in its decisions. Even then, I have demanded that the circular appointing people facing investigation in the Sabarimala gold loss case to key posts be withdrawn," he said.Muraleedharan said he believed Jayakumar, though appointed by the previous LDF government, was functioning impartially."If the circular is not corrected, the state government will assume that the current board also has involvement in the gold loss incident," he said.The minister said the Devaswom Department could decide on further action in the gold loss case only after the Special Investigation Team files its charge sheets in the two cases.The SIT is yet to file charge sheets in two cases related to the alleged gold loss, he said."If flaws are found in the charge sheets, the cabinet will decide on further investigations," Muraleedharan said."We will intervene if the findings in the charge sheets are not satisfactory," he said.He also said more revelations regarding Sabarimala were likely to emerge."Former Devaswom minister V N Vasavan himself has said that more revelations are to come. When new revelations emerge, investigations will be conducted based on them," he said.Vasavan had recently indicated that more disclosures could surface following reports that former TDB president and ex-MLA A Padmakumar was writing a book detailing alleged irregularities related to the hill shrine and the entry of two women into the temple following the Supreme Court verdict.Meanwhile, Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala said media reports regarding Padmakumar's purported revelations did not warrant a fresh probe."Padmakumar is a prime accused in the Sabarimala gold loss case. If he makes any revelations, the SIT will examine whether they are relevant. There is no need for a fresh investigation," Chennithala told reporters.The minister noted that Padmakumar, who was arrested by the SIT, had secured statutory bail after 90 days in custody."If his revelations are of any significance, the SIT, which is functioning under the court's supervision, can look into them," he said.Padmakumar is also facing disciplinary proceedings within the CPI, and a decision in the matter is expected to be taken by the party's Pathanamthitta district committee.Recent media reports claimed that Padmakumar, then president of the Travancore Devaswom Board, and senior police officer S Sreejith were deliberately kept away from Sannidhanam on the day two women entered the Sabarimala temple in January 2019.The reports further claimed that Padmakumar had alleged the move was orchestrated by a "highly influential person" who wielded considerable influence within both the CPI and the then Left government.According to the reports, Padmakumar also claimed that he was instructed not to travel to Sabarimala on that day and was instead asked to proceed to Thiruvananthapuram.This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.