Sabarimala gold scam: SIT submits analysis report of National Metallurgical Laboratory

The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Sabarimala gold scam has submitted the scientific report from the National Metallurgical Laboratory, Jamshedpur. The report was handed over in a sealed cover to the Enquiry Commissioner and Special Judge (Vigilance), Kollam, on Friday. A total of 36 samples were collected under two crimes and were sent to the NML for scientific examination.

The SIT has told the High Court that the findings of the NML would constitute the very basis and fulcrum of the prosecution case. Sources said that the report underlines the methods employed to separate gold from the claddings, and key evidence has emerged on the quantity of gold originally present on the claddings. 

In February 2026, the High Court noted that an advanced forensic and metallurgical examination was absolutely essential and that the results would constitute the foundation upon which the prosecution must rest its case to establish the allegations in a clear, cogent, and legally sustainable manner.

The HC had directed the team to undertake specialised scientific examinations, including X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy (XRF) to determine surface elemental composition, Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) for ultra-trace impurity and elemental profiling, and Optical Emission Spectroscopy (OES) to analyse alloy composition and metallurgical uniformity.

In the first phase of the investigation into the alleged misappropriation of gold at Sabarimala shrine, the SIT obtained documentary materials establishing that the sanctum sanctorum, side frames, pillar plates, Dwarapalakas and allied structures were originally clad with gold by McDowell and Company. 

In the second phase, documentary and oral evidence were collected to substantiate the execution, supervision and completion of the work related to the replacement of the old sanctum sanctorum door with a newly gold-plated door in the year 2019. 

The third phase concerns the alleged removal of the Dwarapalaka plates, side plates and door frames with the intention of misappropriating the gold cladding affixed and thereafter gold plating the same using minimal quantities of gold so as to conceal the misappropriation and theft. 

The SIT has reported that substantial oral evidence has been gathered, and preliminary scientific examination indicated that the original gold cladding had been removed and replaced through fresh surface plating of lesser thickness. The SIT opted for an advanced scientific analysis to establish, with precision and objectivity, the extent of material alteration, the nature of metallurgical manipulation, and the quantum of gold originally present and subsequently depleted.