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Thiruvananthapuram, October 23 (IANS) Former Sabarimala administrative officer Murari Babu has been taken into custody by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) in the Sabarimala gold misappropriation case.
He was detained from his residence in Kottayam district around 10 pm on Wednesday night.
In 2019, when the alleged scam took place in Sabarimala temple, he was the responsible officer. He was suspended by the Travancore Devaswom Board under which he is a top official.
After being taken into custody, Babu was brought to the SIT camp office in the state capital. It will be known within the day whether SIT will proceed with other processes or not.
Babu is accused in cases related to theft and illegal transportation of gold-plated panels and frames from the temple.
The SIT earlier filed two separate FIRs and named 10 people as accused, including the main accused – Unnikrishnan Potti – who has been arrested.
Babu is also an accused in both the FIRs.
The SIT, so far, after its investigation, believes that Babu was a key link in the conspiracy that ran from 2019 to 2024.
It was during his tenure as administrative officer in 2019 that the practice of replacing the gold layer on Dwarpalak plates and wooden frames with copper layer reportedly began.
The charges against him also include falsification of records initiated under his supervision.
However, since his name surfaced, Babu has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
He said the mention of copper plating in the mahazar (official record) was based on a letter from the tantri (chief priest).
Babu has always claimed that he had only submitted the preliminary report, while the final approval came from higher authorities.
Meanwhile, the SIT is recording the statements of witnesses. The SIT has started questioning the security and temple staff who were on duty when the gold panels were removed from Sabarimala.
The local court has given the custody of the first accused Potti to the SIT till October 30.
While the SIT is continuing its investigation, SIT officials are likely to reach Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai for evidence collection.
–IANS
SG/DPB