The Kerala High Court on Monday directed the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate alleged irregularities concerning the reduced weight of gold-plated copper plates of the Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) idols at the Sabarimala temple.

A Division Bench of Justices Raja Vijayaraghavan V and K V Jayakumar passed the order after the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) Vigilance team submitted an interim report following its preliminary inquiry.

In 2019, the Dwarapalaka idols were sent to a Chennai-based firm for electroplating, sponsored by businessman Unnikrishnan Potty. Subsequently, discrepancies were noticed in the weight of the gold-clad copper plates, prompting the High Court to direct the TDB Vigilance to investigate the matter.

As part of the inquiry, the Vigilanc

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