Allegation of scam regarding ghee in Kerala’s famous Sabarimala temple, HC orders investigation

Thiruvananthapuram: After the loot of gold in the famous Sabarimala temple of Kerala, now the matter of irregularities regarding ghee has come to light. There are allegations of embezzlement of lakhs of rupees in the alleged scam related to ghee. Kerala High Court has ordered investigation in this matter.

What is the whole matter?

There are allegations that in a period of just two months, approximately Rs 35 lakh was embezzled under the guise of sale of ghee in the temple. The vigilance officer of the temple was the first to get wind of this irregularity, when an internal audit was conducted, shocking information about the scam came to light and in this connection, Travancore Devaswom Board counter in-charge Sunil Potti was also suspended.

Now, taking cognizance of the report filed by the Vigilance Commissioner of the temple in connection with this scam, the High Court has directed the State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Department to get to the bottom of this entire matter and submit the investigation report within a month.

What is the mathematics of ghee?

All the devotees who visit Sabarimala for the darshan of Lord Ayyappa offer coconut and ghee to the Lord. This ghee offered to the Lord is then sold as Prasad to the devotees, called “Aathiya Sishtam” Prasad, a major source of revenue for TDB.

A contract has been given by TDB to pack the ghee in 100 ml packets and deliver it to the counter, in this process all the material is from TDB itself, the contractor gets 20 paise for making each packet, TDB has fixed the price of 100 ml ghee at Rs 100.

How was the embezzlement committed?

The investigation revealed that between November 17, 2025, and December 26, 2025, the contractor had packed 3,52,050 packets of 100 ml, and those packets were handed over to the special officer of the temple for sale. Of the 3,52,050 packets, around 89,300 packets were sold from the counter at Maramath Building on different days.

Out of 89,300 packets, 143 packets were found to be defective, and the total number of packets left in the counter as of December 27, 2025 was only 28. After deducting the defective packets and those left in the counter, the amount realized from the sale of 89,129 packets should have been deposited to the Board. However, the staff in-charge of the counter collected only 75,450 packets of money.

Thus, the records show that 13,679 packets worth Rs 13,67,900 have not been deposited. The court said that the purpose of depositing so little money in such a short period of time is worrying and it cannot be ignored as a mere accounting mistake. That is why the court has now ordered a vigilance investigation.

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