The Kerala High Court granted 30 more days to the Vigilance Bureau to probe alleged fund misappropriation involving Sabarimala ghee offerings. The court noted additional suspects among TDB staff, requiring further investigation into the expanding corruption case.
KOCHI: The Kerala High Court has granted the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau an additional 30 days to complete its investigation into allegations that Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) employees misappropriated funds connected to the sale of ‘Adiya Sishtam Ghee’ a sacred offering sold to devotees at the Lord Ayyappa shrine in Sabarimala.
A bench of Justices Raja Vijayaraghavan V and K V Jayakumar approved the extension after being informed by the Bureau that nine more TDB staff members are suspected to be involved in the alleged scam and that their involvement needs to be probed.
The VACB had earlier registered a First Information Report (FIR) against 33 people in connection with the alleged misappropriation of proceeds from the sale of the ghee.
The Bureau also told the court that inadequate and improper maintenance of records by the TDB has significantly slowed the investigation, making it difficult to conclude the probe within the time limit already fixed.
After considering the submissions, the court said it was satisfied that the request for more time was warranted.
The bench said,
“Accordingly, a further period of 30 days is granted to conclude the investigation. We direct the Bureau to seek permission of this court prior to submitting the final report,”
The Court further directed the VACB to conduct a thorough and detailed probe, clearly identifying and assigning the role of each individual found to be involved, and to proceed strictly in accordance with law so that appropriate action can be taken without delay.
The High Court had, in January, directed the VACB to register a case and form a team of “upright and competent officers” to investigate the matter.
The subsequent orders were passed in a petition initiated by the Court itself, based on a report submitted by the TDB’s Chief Vigilance and Security Officer. The report stated that the sale proceeds of 16,628 packets of ghee sold at the shrine had not been remitted to the Devaswom account.
It also indicated that there was a shortage of 22,565 packets of ghee during the period from December 27, 2025 to January 2, 2026, resulting in a revenue loss of Rs 22,65,500 for the Devaswom.
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