January 20, 2026 : The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday carried out search operations at 21 locations across Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, in connection with alleged misappropriation of gold and other assets linked to the Sabarimala Temple.
The probe stems from multiple FIRs registered by the Kerala Crime Branch, which point to an organised conspiracy involving officials of the Travancore Devaswom Board, private individuals, intermediaries and jewellers. Investigators have found that between 2019 and 2025, gold-clad sacred artefacts were allegedly shown as copper plates in official records and unlawfully removed from temple premises. The gold is suspected to have been extracted through chemical processes at private facilities in Chennai and parts of Karnataka, generating proceeds that were subsequently retained, transferred and concealed.
According to the ED, the searches were aimed at tracing the proceeds of crime, identifying beneficiaries, and seizing incriminating documents and digital evidence to determine the full scale of the alleged money laundering. The agency has also flagged indications of other financial irregularities at Sabarimala, including suspected misappropriation connected with temple offerings and rituals, which are now under examination within the PMLA framework.
