Scam in gold and silver items belonging to Kerala’s famous Guruvayur temple : Audit report reveals

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) – The Kerala State Audit Department has said in its reports for the years 2019-20 and 2020-21 that serious irregularities and improper procedures have been found in the management of gold, silver and other valuables of the Guruvayur temple.

Items used for rituals turned out to be lighter after being returned

The report said that there was widespread misuse of gold and silver vessels used in daily rituals in the temple. A check of the double-locked register that kept these records revealed that the items returned to the temple manager, Guruvayur Devaswom, after use were often of lesser weight. Sometimes, silver items were returned instead of gold items. A silver crown was returned instead of a gold crown. In 10 months, the weight of a silver vessel was reduced by 1 kg 19 grams. The weight of a silver lamp was reduced by several grams. A 2 kg 65 grams silver vessel weighed only 750 grams.

Ivory weighing more than 530 kg missing

The biggest lapse in ivory management occurred at the Punnathur Kotta sanctuary of the Guruvayur Devaswom. Over 530 kg of ivory collected from Punnathur Kotta was missing. The audit of the year 2019-20 revealed that 522 kg 86 g of ivory was collected from temple elephants that year, of which none was handed over to the forest department as per the law. Between April and November 2019, ivory of varying weights was either removed or remained in the custody of the Guruvayur Devaswom without documentation. According to the letter from the Assistant Conservator of Forests, the Devaswom was directed to report the ivory under its custody within 10 days; but the board did not provide any information and did not hand over the ivory or its pieces to the forest department.

The matter is in Court and the Devaswom has presented its views : Guruvayur Devaswom

Guruvayur Devaswom Chairman V.K. Vijayan said about the irregularities found in the report that the matter predates the tenure of the current board. It has already been taken to Court, where the devaswom has presented its case.

Editorial Perspective

How many more scams of Government takeover of temples need to come out before the temples’ control is handed over to the devotees ? Why aren’t the people rising up against this ?