The Pathanamthitta Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) unit on Wednesday arrested KR Sunilkumar Potti, a former priest and Devaswom employee, for his alleged involvement in a major financial scam during the 2025 Sabarimala Mandala-Makaravilakku season.
The accused, a native of Aroor in Alappuzha, was earlier serving as a priest at the Chaliyekkara Bhadrakali temple under the Punalur group of the TDB. During the pilgrimage season, he was officially deputed by the board to supervise the sale of ‘Aadiya Shishtam Neyyu’ (ghee left over from the sacrifice) at Sabarimala.
The arrest follows a detailed investigation into irregularities surrounding the sale of ghee packets during the festival season. According to the Vigilance department, the devaswom staff entrusted with the sale of these packages tampered with the stock records and did not use the entire proceeds in the board’s account. This systemic embezzlement resulted in a substantial financial loss of ₹36,24,400 to the board. Fraudulent activity was discovered after discrepancies were found between actual inventory sold and sales officially reported by authorized employees.
Sunilkumar Potti was arrested after the Pathanamthitta Vigilance Unit registered a case in connection with the financial loss suffered by the board. He will be produced before the vigilance court in Kollam.
Published – 04 Feb 2026 20:20 IST
