Kerala Parliamentary Affairs Minister MB Rajesh on Thursday defended the ongoing SIT probe and criticized the opposition UDF for “playing drama” over the Sabarimala gold theft case. This came after Unnikrishnan Patti, the first accused in the case, walked out of jail after getting statutory bail in the case on the same day.
Bengaluru police stand guard at BMTC bus stand as coronavirus cases rise in Bengaluru on Wednesday (PTI)As UDF MLAs sat on the floor of the House raising slogans against the LDF government and demanding the resignation of Temple Affairs Minister VN Vasavan, Minister Rajesh hit back by alleging that the opposition was “scared” that the SIT probe would extend to some top brass.
“The High Court’s Devaswam bench trusted the SIT probe. The court said that if the SIT filed the chargesheet in haste, there were high chances that the accused in the case could escape the trial stage. The bench said that even if an accused is released on statutory bail, they will not be released,” Rajesh asked for bail.
“The opposition leader thinks he is above the court. The opposition wants the real accused to escape. They know that the investigation will extend to some people who are found to have links with Patti. Didn’t Patti first appear at Sabarimala when Congress leader Prayar Gopalakrishnan was the head of TDB? Unfortunately, the opposition died dramatically, because he died on the real issue of the opposition. Added
At the same time, opposition leader VD Satishan alleged that there is a conspiracy behind the delay in filing the charge sheet.
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“The gold sheet covering the idol of Dwarapalak has been sold for crores of rupees. But the stolen gold has not been recovered yet. Evidence has not been collected. In this situation, the evidence will be destroyed if the accused come out. The accused CPM leaders will also come out. If the investigation had gone in the right direction, then Samil leaders of CPM would have been big claimants today.” He demanded the court’s intervention to speed up the SIT investigation.
Patti, the priest-turned-real estate businessman accused of stealing gold from the assets of the Sabarimala temple, walked out of jail on Thursday after being granted bail by a court of inquiry commissioner and special judge, Kollam.
He got statutory bail after the SIT failed to submit the chargesheet within 90 days.
Kollam Vigilance Court Judge Mohit CS granted Patti bail in the case of embezzlement of gold from the door frame of the sanctum sanctorum.
The court imposed conditions, including execution of a bond with two solvent sureties ₹ 2 lakh each, a direction not to enter Pathanamthitta district, an order to refrain from influencing witnesses or tampering with evidence, and an obligation to appear before the investigating officer whenever summoned.
He was granted bail in January in the ‘Dwarpalak’ statue case. Patti was first arrested in this case last October.
Meanwhile, the court extended the remand of tantri (head priest) Kandararu Rajivaru, who was produced through video conferencing. He applied for bail, which will be considered on February 9.
