The Special Investigation Team (SIT) appointed by the Kerala High Court to probe the Sabarimala Ayyappa Temple gold theft case conducted a forensic on-site inspection at the temple on Tuesday.
Officials said the SIT appeared to be widening the scope of its probe after the High Court indicated that the probe’s findings so far revealed an entrenched and organized pattern of theft and that the 2019 crime may not be a one-off as initially believed, but part of a series going back decades.
The discovery by the Vikram Sarabhai Space Center (VSSC) that the gilded panels surrounding the stone carvings, statues and door frames of the sanctum sanctorum were metallurgically different from the original gilded panels donated to the temple by industrialist Vijay Mallya in 1998 has reportedly given a new direction to the SIT probe.
Citing the VSSC test report, the SIT told the Supreme Court that the panels returned to the temple after restoration by the main accused, Unnkrishnan Potti, showed a different molecular structure containing nickel and synthetic resins than the original gilded copper panels.
Additionally, officials said the original gilded panels contained mercury, which was drastically less in the molecular structure of those returned to the temple the same year after renovations at Smart Creations in Ambattur, Chennai. The VSSC also noted that the panels contained high amounts of a shiny nickel-based polymer commonly used for heat shielding.
Officials said the VSSC’s findings prompted the SIT to suspect systematic fraud, possibly including replicating the panels to pass the originals off to wealthy collectors as sacred artefacts. They said the SIT could inventory the temple vault for the missing artefacts and take other original panels for testing to see if the racket is more widespread.
The SIT has so far interviewed 202 witnesses and recorded their statements.
Officials said the SIT was required to verify other reports, including metallurgical assessments submitted by Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) appraisers in 1988 and later, to understand the depth and scale of the suspected racket centered around the Ayyappa temple, allegedly involving officials, private sponsors, agents, jewellers, celebrities and restoration centers.
SIT Chief Investigating Officer S. Sasidharan led the team to Sannidhanam. Additional Director General of Police, Law, Order and Crime H. Venkatesh is overseeing the investigation.
Published – 20 Jan 2026 20:45 IST
