The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) has arrested a former priest under the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) in connection with irregularities in the sale of ghee (Adiya Shishtam ghee) offerings at Sabarimala during the just-concluded Mandala-Makaravilakku pilgrimage season, officials said on Wednesday.
According to officials, the accused, KR Sunilkumar Potti, a native of Aroor, Alappuzha and former priest of Chaliyekkara Bhadrakali temple under Punalur group of TDB, was taken into custody by the Pathanamthitta Vigilance Unit. TDB entrusted him with the responsibility of selling Adiya Shishtam ghee at Sabarimala during the 2025-2026 pilgrimage season.
According to Vigilance, the employees appointed by the TDB for the sale of ghee in packets during the Mandala-Makaravilakku festival were allegedly involved in massive irregularities by not remitting the entire sale proceeds to the board. Instead, manipulation of shares and accounts was done, causing a financial loss of ₹36,24,400 to the board. After the Vigilance investigation, the case was registered as a charge sheet by the TDB staff.
The investigation found that Sunilkumar Potti, indicted as the 13th accused, embezzled and diverted the sale proceeds of 62 packets of ghee worth ₹68,200 for his own use over a period of 17 days. The arrested was produced before the Kollam Vigilance Court and remanded in judicial custody.
₹100 per pack
Branded as ‘Adiya Shishtam Neyy’, the ghee is being sold as an offer in 100ml packs priced at ₹100 each. The alleged discrepancy came to light when Vigilance checked the records, which revealed that the amount corresponding to the packets sold had not been credited to the TDB account.
The inspection also found that proper records of the number of packages issued for sale and remaining stock are not maintained, creating scope for such irregularities. There are also allegations that similar outages have been reported before, but were often swept under the carpet as mere accounting errors.
Published – 05 Feb 2026 20:48 IST
