Sabarimala gold theft case: SIT detains former TDB president P.S. Prasanth for questioning
The Special Investigation Team (SIT) has detained former Travancore Devaswom Board president P.S. Prasanth in connection with a gold theft case at the Sabarimala temple. Investigators are probing whether the board fabricated defects in temple panels to facilitate a fraudulent electroplating contract.
Why it matters
This case involves potential corruption and mismanagement of assets at a major religious institution, raising questions about administrative oversight and public trust.
The Kerala High Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Sabarimala gold theft case has detained former Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) president P.S. Prasanth for questioning at his house in Thiruvananthapuram early Thursday (July 23, 2026).
The purported detention comes hours after Mr Prasanth posted on Facebook that his arrest in the case was imminent. Nevertheless, there was no official word on whether the Crime Branch team has arrested Mr Prasanth or indicted him in the case. His immediate whereabouts remained unknown.
Notably, Mr Prasanth’s supposed custody comes nearly three weeks after the SIT questioned Unnikrishnan Potti, the prime accused in the case, as part of its inquiry into the “questionable circumstances” that led the TDB to resend the temple’s gold-plated copper panels ensconcing stone sculptures to Smart Creations, a metal works factory in Chennai, for electroplating in 2025.
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