A special investigation team probing the alleged loss of gold from the Sabarimala temple artefacts, Pathanamthitta, reached the hill temple on Thursday as part of collecting fresh samples for scientific analysis, police sources said.
SIT reaches Sabarimala to collect fresh samples to probe gold lossThe team, led by SP S Sasidharan, reached Sabarimala’s base camp Pampa in the morning and proceeded towards Sannidhanam later in the afternoon, officials said.
The SIT decided to collect fresh samples for scientific analysis after getting permission from the Kerala High Court on Monday.
According to police sources, the Sabarimala temple will open at 5 pm on Thursday for the monthly puja and will close at 10 pm on February 17.
The SIT is expected to collect the samples after the temple closes for the day after various pujas at Sannidhanam, sources said.
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Officials said the SIT will be assisted by staff from the Legal Metrology Department, forensic laboratories and skilled artisans to remove the gold-plated coating of the artefacts of Srikovil and its pillars.
The SIT is investigating two cases related to the alleged disappearance of gold from Dwarpalak murti plates and doorframes in Srikovil.
The SIT submitted before the Kerala High Court that advanced scientific analysis is essential for accuracy and objectivity, the extent of material alteration, the nature of metallurgical manipulations and the amount of gold originally present and subsequently depleted.
It proposed conducting X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy to determine surface elemental composition, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry for ultra-trace impurity and elemental profiling, and optical emission spectroscopy to analyze alloy composition and metal uniformity.
The SIT informed the court that it has approached premier national research institutes and laboratories including Bhava Atomic Research Center in Mumbai, National Metallurgical Laboratory in Jamshedpur and Defense Metallurgical Research Laboratory in Hyderabad to conduct specialized tests.
Earlier, SIT had collected similar samples for analysis at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Center last year, but such facilities were not available there.
While granting permission, the Kerala High Court observed that allegations involving the removal and replacement of precious gold cladding from temple consecration strikes cannot rely solely on testimonial or documentary records, which may be susceptible to omission, manipulation or interpretive controversy.
The court said it was satisfied that advanced forensic and metallurgical tests were absolutely essential and the findings would form the basis of the prosecution’s case.
The court directed the SIT to submit a report on February 19, updating the samples collected from the Sabarimala temple and the agencies to which they were sent for scientific analysis.
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