Gold and Silver Items Tampered With: Weights Reduced, Materials Replaced
The audit team dug into the temple's double-locked register, which tracks valuables used in poojas. What they found was alarming – items returned after rituals were often lighter or fake.
- Crown Swap Scandal: A precious gold crown was replaced with a cheap silver one.
- Silver Pot Mystery: One silver vessel lost 1.19 kg of weight in just 10 months.
- Lamp Weight Drop: A silver lamp shed hundreds of grams over time.
- Vessel Replacement: A 2.65 kg silver pot was swapped for a tiny 750-gram version.
These irregularities suggest insiders pocketed the precious metals during handling. Devotees who donate these items for rituals expect them safeguarded, but the report shows the Guruvayur Devaswom Board failed to prevent tampering.
Missing Ivory from Temple Elephants: Over 530 kg Vanished Without Trace
The biggest red flag? Hundreds of kilograms of ivory from temple elephants at Punnathur Kotta Sanctuary. In 2019-20 alone, 522.86 kg was harvested from elephant tusks. But none reached the Forest Department as required by law.
- Ivory was either "removed" or stashed away without papers.
- No seizure memos (mahazaar) or handover receipts exist.
- A Forest Department letter demanded a report within 10 days – the Devaswom ignored it completely.
This isn't just sloppy admin; it's a violation that could lead to wildlife law breaches. Temple elephants are sacred, but their tusks seem to have fueled a secret trade.
Other Missing Treasures: Devotee Offerings Disappear
The audit didn't stop at metals and ivory. In 2019-20, 17 sacks of Manjadi Kuru seeds – donated by faithful visitors – went poof from the temple's western tower.
- These seeds were auctioned at ₹100 per kg, but the buyer never claimed them.
- CCTV caught health department staff loading them onto a tractor.
- Officials say it was for "space issues," moved to a nearby warehouse. But no records show where they ended up or if they hit the next auction.
Such lapses erode trust in one of India's richest temples, where offerings fund everything from elephant care to poojas.
Devaswom Board's Defense: "It Happened Before Us"
Guruvayur Devaswom President V.K. Vijayan dismissed the uproar. "These issues are from past boards, not ours," he said. The matter's in court, with the Devaswom submitting its side.
