A political row has gripped the TV Puram panchayat in Kottayam after 16 commercial LPG cylinders meant for a newly constructed public crematorium have been reported stolen.

The theft, which went undetected for weeks, has now sparked a controversy in the committee with the opposition alleging that the committee tried to cover up the incident.

Thieves broke into a storage room adjacent to the modern gas crematorium at Cherakkal and stole 16 commercial cylinders, each weighing 19 kg. The theft is believed to have occurred around April, during the peak of the LPG crisis, but came to light only recently when members of the Haritha Karma Sena arrived to open a nearby Material Collection Facility (MCF) room and found its lock broken.

According to Sharath A S, ward member, the Panchayat Secretary subsequently filed a complaint with the Vaikom Police. “The CCTV cameras in the premises appear to be non-functional because there are no visuals pertaining to the incident,” he said.

He further added that the panchayat had deliberately withheld information about the theft from the people.

Police have said the investigation is progressing actively. The construction of the crematorium was funded jointly by the Vaikom Block Panchayat and TV Puram Grama Panchayat

Despite its inauguration in October 2025, the crematorium has not yet commenced operations due to pending regulatory documentation. While the necessary papers have since been received, final clearance from the District Collector is pending.

The panchayat had submitted an application to operationalise the facility by July, and the theft occurred during this intervening period.