Gold plates of Dwarapalaka idol back at Sabarimala amid vigilance probe

Pathanamthitta: The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) brought back the gold plates of the Dwarapalaka idol at Sabarimala Sannidhanam on Sunday, days after the Kerala High Court ordered a probe into discrepancies in its weight. The gold plates will be reinstalled on the idols after securing the court’s permission. 

The TDB had come under fire after the special commissioner reported to the Devaswom bench of the High Court that the plates were removed without his permission. Further investigations under the court revealed the discrepancies in the weight.

With sponsorship from devotee Unnikrishnan Potty, the TDB had sent the items to Smart Creations (the eighth respondent) for electroplating. The total weight of the gold-clad copper coverings was 42.8 kg before being handed over for electroplating in August 2019. After the process, the weight dropped to 38.258 kg. While ordering a probe, the Kerala High Court criticised the TDB for failing to report the loss of nearly 4.5 kg of gold.

After examining registers produced by the TDB, the High Court found that the copper plates covering the Dwarapalakas had been gold-plated and installed with sanction as early as 1999. Records from 2019 showed that Potty sought and obtained permission, at his own expense, to undertake fresh gold-plating of the idols.

The records noted that 12 copper plates weighing 25.4 kg were handed over to him on July 19, 2019, and two peedams weighing 17.4 kg on July 20, 2019, making a total of 42.8 kg. Potty later took them to Smart Creations on August 29, 2019, unaccompanied by Devaswom officials. At this stage, the weight stood at 38.258 kg, with an unexplained loss of 4.541 kg. After re-plating, the weight increased to 38.653 kg—still reflecting a shortfall of 4.147 kg from the original 42.8 kg.