Sabarimala gold scam: TDB ex-member denied bail

T'puram: Kollam vigilance court on Monday rejected the bail application of former Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) member K P Sankaradas in two cases related to the Sabarimala gold scam. Vigilance court judge Mohit C S dismissed the pleas after reviewing the medical documents submitted by Sankaradas. Sankaradas is listed as the 15th accused in the case involving the alleged loss of gold from the dwarapalaka idols and 11th accused in the case related to missing gold from the sreekovil doorframes. Sankaradas's counsel G Mohanraj said that bail was sought on medical grounds, but the court rejected it.
Sankaradas was part of the TDB headed by A Padmakumar in 2019, when gold ornaments were allegedly allowed to be handed over to the main accused Unnikrishnan Potti for replating work. He was the CPI nominee on the board. The court had slammed the police for not arresting him. Sankaradas was admitted to a private hospital in the state capital due to health problems and was later arrested by the special investigation team probing the case on Jan 14. He was later shifted to the medical college hospital on court directive. So far, the court has granted bail to seven accused in the case, including main accused Potti. Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Holi wishes, messages and quotes !