Thiruvananthapuram | Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) president P S Prasanth on Saturday said the widespread support received by the recent Global Ayyappa Sangamam was the reason for the present "fake allegations" related to Sabarimala.
He accused the opposition Congress and BJP of using the ongoing row over the gold-clad plates of the Dwarapalaka idols at the Lord Ayyappa temple as a "golden opportunity".
While talking to reporters here, Prasanth further said that the TDB would demand a comprehensive probe into all matters of Sabarimala from 1998, the year in which business tycoon Vijay Mallya sponsored for gold plating, to 2025.
The TDB president said he met Devaswom Minister V N Vasavan and held discussions on the matter. The minister also shared the same opinion, he said.
Prasanth said a detailed probe is needed into the allegations of discrepancies over its weight and allegations about dubious persons involved in the row. The TDB's standing council would demand the same at the court, he added.
Let the court carry out a comprehensive probe into the matters in Sabarimala from 1998 to 2025, he further said.
"All these controversies have come up following the recent Global Ayyappa Sangamam. The widespread support received by the TDB and the Devaswom Department for the the event was the reason for (the people) creating such fake allegations," Prasanth alleged.
Reiterating that there was no lapse from the part of the TDB in sending the gold-clad plates of the Dwarapalaka idols at Sabarimala to Chennai for replating, he said all necessary procedures were met in this regard.
"They have sent under the aegis of the Thiruvabharanam Commissioner. The executive officer and the vigilance officials were present. All the procedures were clearly videographed and a mahasar was prepared in the beginning and at the end. The gold was sent in a safe vehicle with police protection," he added.
Thiruvabharanam Commissioner is an official of the TDB responsible for the sacred ornaments of the Sabarimala temple.
He also clarified that the Board had not given the gold in the hands of sponsor Unnikrishnan Potty but only asked him to come to Chennai in connection with replating.
Potty, a Bengaluru-based businessman, sponsored the gold plating of the Dwarapalaka idols and took them to Chennai for the purpose in 2019.
The Kerala High Court recently ordered a probe after a Dwarapalaka peedam (pedestal) was recovered from his relative's house. He had earlier alleged that the peedam was missing from Sabarimala.
