BJP questions Tantri’s arrest, Mantri’s release; leaders visit Kandararu Rajeevaru’s home

Thiruvananthapuram: The BJP has taken a clear political stance in the Sabarimala gold loss case, questioning the arrest of Tantri Kandararu Rajeevaru and alleging selective action by the Special Investigation Team (SIT), even as senior party leaders demanded a CBI probe into the incident.

While senior NDA leaders, including BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar, former state president K Surendran and Bharath Dharma Jana Sena head Thushar Vellappally, spelt out the front’s position at a press conference in Thiruvananthapuram, party leaders on Saturday visited Rajeevaru’s residence in Chengannur, signalling open support for the chief priest.

BJP leader Sandeep Vachaspathi said the visit was a goodwill gesture but questioned the “haste” in arresting the Tantri. He asked why former Travancore Devaswom Board member K P Shankardas had not been arrested and why the then Devaswom minister Kadakampally Surendran was excluded from the case.

“There appears to be an attempt to place the entire blame on the Tantri while protecting the minister,” Vachaspathi alleged.

Meanwhile, in an apparent reference to the Kuruva robbery gang Chandrasekhar alleged that a “CPM-Congress Kuruva Sangamam” was behind the Sabarimala gold loss case. While asserting that the BJP was not trying to shield anyone, he said there was a strong suspicion that the arrest of Rajeevaru was being used as a diversion.

“The Tantri was arrested, but the Mantri (minister) was questioned and released. Why? That is a legitimate question,” Chandrasekhar said, referring to the recent interrogation of former Devaswom minister Kadakampally Surendran. He added that only a CBI investigation would bring out the truth and ensure that all those responsible were held accountable.

Senior BJP leader K Surendran questioned the SIT remand report, seeking to know the basis of the conspiracy charges against Rajeevaru. He argued that there was no evidence to show the Tantri had made any financial gains in the case. Surendran also questioned how the investigators could arrest the chief priest for alleged violations of ritual norms while taking no action against those who had direct administrative control over the temple affairs, including Kadakampally Surendran, former Travancore Devaswom Board president P S Prasanth and former board member K P Shankardas.

The BJP-NDA leaders also announced that homes would light “Ayyappa Jyothi” on January 14, Makaravilakku Day, marking the beginning of protests in connection with the Sabarimala gold loss incident.

According to officials, Rajeevaru was arrested based on statements given by Unnikrishnan Potty and former TDB president A Padmakumar. The SIT has alleged that the Tantri had close associations with Potty and was aware that the replating of the Dwarapalaka and the Sreekovil doorframe plates was carried out outside the Sabarimala temple premises in 2019, in violation of ritual norms.

Rajeevaru is the 11th person to be arrested in the case since the Kerala High Court constituted the SIT to probe the alleged gold loss. Meanwhile, he was shifted to a state-run hospital in Thiruvananthapuram earlier in the day after he complained of uneasiness while in prison.