Kerala HC directs Principal Accountant General, KSDA Senior Deputy Director to appear over irregularities in Guruvayur Devaswom Audit
The Kerala High Court has ordered senior audit officials to appear in court to explain ongoing irregularities and audit deficiencies within the Guruvayur Devaswom Board. The court expressed concern over the lack of proper accounting systems, delays in annual reports, and the failure to verify valuable temple assets.
Why it matters
The case underscores the legal and administrative challenges in managing the financial transparency of large religious institutions.
The Kerala High Court has directed the Senior Deputy Director, Kerala State Audit department, to appear in person and report on the current status of the audit of the Guruvayur Devaswom Board. In addition, the Principal Accountant General (Accounts & Entitlements), Kerala, has been asked to inform whether the audit deficiencies identified by the Kerala State Audit Department (KSDA) of the Guruvayur Devaswom Board in 2023 had been satisfactorily addressed.
The Audit department had reported to the court that the Board had failed to formulate a ‘flawless system’, resulting in accounting difficulties, while implementing modern technology to facilitate cashless transactions and speedy assistance to devotees in vazhipadu collection. The department was not informed regarding the operating procedures and cyber security protocols of the software. Further, no training or demonstration was provided to the Statutory Audit Wing in this regard.
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