Unnikrishnan Potty, the first accused in the Sabarimala gold theft case, met the ninth accused, Pankaj Bhandari, owner of Smart Creations, and the 10th accused, Roddam Pandurangaiah Naga Govardhan, owner of Roddam Jewellers, in Bengaluru while the case was ongoing in October 2025. According to the statement of facts submitted by S Sasidharan, Head, Special Investigation Team (SIT), to the Kerala High Court, the meeting was held to conceal the crime allegedly committed in 2019.

The SIT further stated that Govardhan's claim that he spent money on offerings and donations at the Sabarimala temple does not absolve him of the alleged criminal acts. It argued that the donations were made from his bank account and not from the value of the gold extracted from the offerings. The probe team said there is sufficient evidence to establish his role in the crime, as detailed in the statement of facts.

SIT had earlier said that the scale of the scam could be much bigger. Apart from the door frames and idols, a gold-cladded Shiva idol on its top, the arch, including the vyali roopam (dragon figures), raashi plates, Dasharadha plates and the upper side of the door frame were entrusted to Potty on the pretext of gold cladding by falsely denoting the entire items as copper materials. 

The mahazar prepared at the time of the removal of the Dwarapalaka idols showed that twelve copper plates of the Dwarapalakas, weighing 25.4 kg, and two pedestals, on which the Dwarapalakas stood, weighing 17.4 kg, were handed over to Potty on July 19 and 20, 2019, respectively. The total weight of the entrusted items was 42.8 kg. The records further showed that the gold-clad Dwarapalakas and pedestals were produced by him at Smart Creations, Chennai, on August 29, 2019.

The mahazar then recorded the total weight of the items as 38.258 kilograms, showing an unexplained reduction of 4.541 kilograms from the weight recorded at Sannidhanam. After the gold plating was carried out, another mahazar was prepared, wherein the combined weight of the Dwarapalakas and pedestals was recorded as 38.653 kilograms, which still reflected a reduction of 4.147 kilograms compared to the original weight of 42.8 kilograms.

During the probe, the SIT has confirmed that gold was extracted using a chemical composition from the seven gold-cladded copper panels at Smart Creations. This gold was later found in the possession of Bhandari and Govardhan. During the interrogation, Bhandari said that gold was separated from two gold-plated copper panels inscribed with ten avatars affixed to the door frame of the sanctum sanctorum, gold-plated panels inscribed with star signs, one atop the frame, gold-plated panels of prabha mandalam, Dwarapalaka idols and pillar plates. Bhandari produced 109.243 gms of gold, which he had taken as labour charge for gold plating on October 25, 2025. 

Govardhan produced 474.96 gms of gold before the SIT on October 24, 2025, which he had received as equivalent of the gold given to Bhandari via a person named Kalpesh. The SIT, in the custody application, has cited that there was much more gold than that which was recovered from Bhandari and Govardhan. The samples have been collected from the gold panels of the Sabarimala temple for a detailed scientific analysis at VSSC Thiruvananthapuram to ascertain the exact quantity of gold which was clad on the panels.