Thiruvananthapuram, The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau , probing the alleged misappropriation of gold and money in connection with the installation of a new temple flag mast at the Sabarimala shrine in 2017, has recorded the statement of Union Minister Suresh Gopi here, officials said on Monday.
Gopi was among the 27 persons who donated gold and money for the temple flag mast in 2017.
VACB sources said his statement was recorded in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday to quantify the gold donated by sponsors, which included film personalities.
Earlier, the VACB had recorded the statements of filmmaker Shaji Kailas, actor-writer Renji Panicker and producer Suresh Kumar.
The statement of actor Mohanlal will also be recorded soon.
VACB sources said statements of around 20 persons have been recorded so far and the remaining donors will give their statements on dates convenient to them.
On February 9, the Kerala High Court granted the VACB 30 days to complete the inquiry and submit a report.
A report filed before the High Court by the Chief Vigilance Officer of the Travancore Devaswom Board stated that in August 2016, it was decided that the installation of the new flag mast would be undertaken entirely at the expense of Phoenix Infrastructure Pvt Ltd, Hyderabad.
An estimate of ₹3.20 crore submitted by the Devaswom Chief Engineer was approved by the Board on September 23, 2016, the report said.
The report further revealed that 9.161 kilograms of gold were purchased from the Customs Department on March 22, 2017, and 412 grams of gold were contributed by devotees for the project.
“Thus, the total quantity of gold available, including Customs purchase and donations, was 9,573.010 grams, whereas the quantity recorded as utilised for the flag mast was 9,340.200 grams,” the High Court observed.
The court also noted that the absence of individual donor receipts deprived donors of documentary proof of accounting, constituting a serious procedural lapse and a grave violation of Devaswom Rules and financial accountability norms.
The probe is being conducted by a team led by VACB Special Investigation Unit-1 SP C S Hari.
Officials added that a case would be registered at the direction of the Kerala High Court after completion of the preliminary inquiry and submission of the report.
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