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Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 7 (IANS) The Congress on Friday decided to intensify its protest over the Sabarimala gold theft case with a ‘Secretariat March’ planned on November 12, Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president Sunny Joseph said.
He said the recent comments made by the Kerala High Court in the case were “shocking” and underlined the magnitude of the scam.
Joseph commented, “The court itself had to describe it as an international robbery.” He said that this case has exposed the deep political involvement behind the theft of gold.
Joseph held the Devaswom Minister and Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) officials responsible for the lapses and demanded their immediate resignation.
“The role of the political leadership is clear. Merely interrogating N. Vasu (the accused) will not reveal the truth – the investigation should interrogate those at the top,” he said.
The Congress leadership has alleged that the state government is trying to minimize the issue and protect those in power.
The party’s ‘Secretariat March’ is expected to mark a major phase of its agitation in which senior leaders, MLAs and workers from across the state will participate.
The Sabarimala gold theft case has sparked a political uproar after the Special Investigation Team (SIT) report and subsequent court observations pointed to irregularities in the gold plating on the doors of the temple’s sanctum sanctorum.
The Congress-led opposition has accused the ruling front of shielding those responsible and demanded a court-monitored impartial investigation.
With the Congress announcing its next round of protests, the controversy over Sabarimala gold theft is deepening, increasing political tension ahead of the local body elections.
Meanwhile, on Friday, the Ranni Magistrate Court remanded the fourth accused, KS Byju, who was arrested on Thursday night, to 14-day police custody.
The court also handed over serving TDB official Murari Babu, who was in judicial custody, to the police for further questioning.
Similarly, Sudhish Kumar, a retired TDB employee, who was in judicial custody, has been handed over to the police pending the ongoing investigation.
The main accused and the one who was arrested first, Unnikrishnan Potti, is still in judicial custody.
Meanwhile, CPI-M state secretary MV Govindan on Friday said the decision to appoint a new TDB team has been taken as the tenure of the current board ends next week.
“It will be the government that will make the announcement,” Govindan said.
The decision will be announced as soon as Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan returns from his Middle East tour.
–IANS
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