Overview

• The Kerala High Court-directed SIT registered two FIRs covering the Dwarapalaka panels and the sanctum door-frame panels, citing alleged misappropriation and forgery.
• Unnikrishnan Potti was named the first accused, and all Travancore Devaswom Board members who served in 2019, including former president A. Padmakumar, were arraigned in the case.
• The Enforcement Directorate has started collecting preliminary information to examine possible money-laundering and financial-crime angles linked to the transactions.
• SIT teams have moved beyond Kerala, with investigators in Chennai and planned inquiries into Potti’s links in Bengaluru and Hyderabad to trace custody and restoration chains.
• A TDB Vigilance report underpinning the FIRs flags violations of Devaswom rules, questions Potti’s income sources, names nine officials for lapses, and notes a discrepancy reported after items were sent to Smart Creations in Chennai in 2019 and returned 49 days later.