Sabarimala gold plating row: Youth Congress protest at TDB office turns violent

Pathanamthitta (Kerala) | Youth Congress activists clashed with police and vandalised a Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) office here on Tuesday during a protest over gold-clad copper plates adorning the Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) idols at Sabarimala Lord Ayyappa shrine.

Congress leader Sandeep Varier, who led the protest, also engaged in a scuffle with the police.

The protestors breached police barricades and reached the TDB office, where several among them pelted stones, shattering window panes.

Varier alleged that he and other leaders were targeted and assaulted by the police using batons. "Nevertheless, we will continue with our protest," he said.

Police were unable to remove Varier and other YC leaders from the scene as protestors surrounded a police jeep.

The activists raised slogans against Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and the police, demanding the resignation of Devaswom Minister V N Vasavan.

Earlier in the day, Opposition UDF MLAs disrupted Assembly proceedings for the second consecutive day, reiterating their demand for Vasavan's resignation over alleged irregularities linked to the gold-clad copper plates at the Sabarimala shrine.

On Monday, the Kerala High Court directed the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe alleged irregularities related to the reduced weight of gold-clad copper plates adorning the Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) idols at Sabarimala.

The discrepancy came to light during court proceedings on the decision to send the claddings for gold-plating again this year, without informing the court.

It was found that when the claddings were last taken out of the shrine for gold-plating in 2019, their weight had reduced by about 4.5 kg, a fact not reported by Devaswom officials.

Last week, the High Court ordered a comprehensive inventory of all valuables, including gold, at the Sabarimala temple under the supervision of retired Justice K T Sankaran.