The arrest of A Padmakumar, a senior CPM leader, former MLA and former president of the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB), in the Sabarimala gold theft case has significant political implications in Kerala.
The arrest has provided a potent political weapon to the Congress-led UDF and BJP to attack the credibility of the ruling CPM, raising questions of corruption and mismanagement of a prominent religious institution. Both Padmakumar and N Vasu, who was arrested on November 11 in connection with the Sabarimala gold heist case, are high-profile members or associates of the CPM.
As expected, the Opposition has seized on the matter, alleging institutional involvement and a high-level conspiracy within the temple administration that points to the ruling party. The Congress and BJP alleged the involvement of top CPM functionaries in the temple scandal. They accused the state government of attempting to shield key functionaries until a court-monitored probe forced the case open.
The arrests have come as a personal setback to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan as also other CPM leaders who claimed that the TDB under the CPM leaders have no role in the Sabarimala temple gold looting. It is a matter of grave concern for the CPM that the arrests took place at a time when the state is going for local body polls next month and assembly polls later in April/May 2026.
BJP Kerala general secretary MT Ramesh the other day alleged that the centre of the conspiracy behind the Sabarimala gold robbery is the AKG Centre, the CPM state headquarter. “The case is not limited to one Unnikrishnan Potty or TDB employee. There is a large network behind this. The plan was to loot all the gold in Sabarimala shrine .It has received government assistance,” he alleged
The Congress-led UDF and the BJP hope to use the gold scandal to sway public opinion in their favour and erode the CPM’s support base, particularly among Ayyappa devotees
The Special Investigation Team (SIT) has invoked the Prevention of Corruption Act, which means that not just serving or retired officials, but also political appointees to the TDB, could face prosecution widening the scope leading to potential political consequences, as the TDB’s three-year tenure involves representation from various political stakeholders.
Responding to the arrest of Padmakumar, Opposition leader VD Satheesan said the procession of CPM leaders to the jail has begun and the next person to be questioned is former Devaswom minister Kadakampally Surendran.
He said the gold theft took place with the knowledge of the CPM. Taking a dig at party’s state secretary MV Govindan, who said that Padmakumar’s arrest is not a setback to the party, Satheesan said only he (Govindan) could say that it was not a setback for the party when its own leaders go to jail.
BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar has demanded the resignation of the Devaswom Minister Vasvan. He said gold theft at Sabarimala would not have happened without the knowledge of Pinarayi Vijayan and CPM.
Former Union Minister and BJP leader V Muraleedharan said that the arrest of Padmakumar proves that the loot took place with the knowledge of the CPM. He asked whether the CPM had deployed a gang of looters in the Sabarimala in the name of the Devaswom Board.