Sabarimala Gold Theft: Kerala High Court Orders Advanced Metallurgical Tests, Sets March 31 Deadline For Final Report

The Kerala High Court on Thursday (19 February) ordered Advanced Metallurgical test of the gold samples from the Sabarimala Temple in the ongoing investigation into the misappropriation of gold.

The direction was issued by a Division Bench comprising Justice Raja Vijayaraghavan V and Justice K V Jayakumar which is considering suo motu proceedings into the Sabarimala gold theft case.

When the matter was taken up, the Investigating Officer appeared in person before the Court.

Referring to its earlier order dated February 09, the Bench reiterated that advanced forensic and metallurgical analysis was essential to establish the allegations in a clear, cogent, and legally sustainable manner.

The Court had previously directed that specialised scientific examinations be undertaken, including X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy (XRF) to determine surface elemental composition; inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) for ultra-trace impurity and elemental profiling; and optical Emission Spectroscopy (OES) to assess alloy composition and metallurgical uniformity.

The Investigating Officer informed the Court that the National Metallurgical Laboratory (NML), Jamshedpur, has agreed to conduct the tests on both control and questioned samples using the specified methods. The Laboratory has consented to undertake the examinations free of cost.

A total of 36 samples have been collected, 30 in Crime No. 3700 of 2025 and six in Crime No. 3701 of 2025 and have been produced before the Enquiry Commissioner and Special Judge (Vigilance), Kollam, for onward transmission to NML. The Laboratory has assured that the examinations will be completed expeditiously.

The Court was further informed that efforts are underway to secure call data records (CDRs) relating to mobile phones allegedly used by certain accused persons. As more than two years have elapsed, the Investigating Team sought the Court's permission to approach mobile service providers, including Vodafone Idea, Jio, BSNL, and Airtel, for any available data.

The Court granted the permission and directed that upon receipt of a formal request from the Investigating Officer, and subject to availability, the service providers shall endeavour to furnish relevant data to the Special Investigation Team.

The head of the Investigation Team also submitted that analysis reports relating to DVR data and call records are still awaited.

In view of the assurances received from NML, the Court was informed that the final report would be filed before the jurisdictional court on or before March 31, 2026.

The Government pleader has submitted that pursuant to directions of the High Court, the Director of the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) has issued an order appointing Deputy Superintendent of Police VACB, Thiruvanathapuram, to conduct a preliminary inquiry into allegations of irregularities concerning the misappropriation of gold connected with the Temple Flag Mast at Sabarimala. It was submitted that report regarding the inquiry will be submitted within a period of 30 days.

Recording the progress by the investigation team, the Court has posted the matter to 26 March for further consideration.

Case No: WP(C) No. 40608 of 2025

Case Title: Suo Motu v. State of Kerala and Ors.