Former Travancore Devaswom Board president P. S. Prasanth has been named the fourth accused in the Sabarimala gold theft case, which stems from the controversial handling of gold-clad copper coverings from the Dwarapalaka idols in 2019 and 2025, involving sponsor Unnikrishnan Potty and Chennai-based firm Smart Creations. Prasanth, who joined the CPI(M) in 2021 after being expelled from Congress and was appointed Board president in October 2023, faces charges alongside six others, including the late former Sabarimala executive officer and the owner of Smart Creations, with the case registered under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and investigated by a Special Investigation Team that claims strong evidence against all seven accused, though Prasanth alleges a conspiracy and political interference in his naming as an accused, denying close ties with Potty and asserting that the primary issue raised was the lack of court intimation regarding the removal of the gold cladding.

Former Travancore Devaswom Board president P. S. Prasanth has been named the fourth accused in the Sabarimala gold theft case, which stems from the controversial handling of gold-clad copper coverings from the Dwarapalaka idols in 2019 and 2025, involving sponsor Unnikrishnan Potty and Chennai-based firm Smart Creations. Prasanth, who joined the CPI(M) in 2021 after being expelled from Congress and was appointed Board president in October 2023, faces charges alongside six others, including the late former Sabarimala executive officer and the owner of Smart Creations, with the case registered under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and investigated by a Special Investigation Team that claims strong evidence against all seven accused, though Prasanth alleges a conspiracy and political interference in his naming as an accused, denying close ties with Potty and asserting that the primary issue raised was the lack of court intimation regarding the removal of the gold cladding.

Former Travancore Devaswom Board president P. S. Prasanth has been named the fourth accused in the Sabarimala gold theft case, which stems from the controversial handling of gold-clad copper coverings from the Dwarapalaka idols in 2019 and 2025, involving sponsor Unnikrishnan Potty and Chennai-based firm Smart Creations. Prasanth, who joined the CPI(M) in 2021 after being expelled from Congress and was appointed Board president in October 2023, faces charges alongside six others, including the late former Sabarimala executive officer and the owner of Smart Creations, with the case registered under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and investigated by a Special Investigation Team that claims strong evidence against all seven accused, though Prasanth alleges a conspiracy and political interference in his naming as an accused, denying close ties with Potty and asserting that the primary issue raised was the lack of court intimation regarding the removal of the gold cladding.

Former Travancore Devaswom Board president P. S. Prasanth has been named an accused in the Sabarimala gold theft case. He has been arraigned in connection with the 2025 case and has been listed as the fourth accused.

A former Congress leader who was expelled from the party, Prasanth joined the CPI(M) in 2021. He was appointed president of the Travancore Devaswom Board in October 2023.

The origin of controversy, however, dates back to 2019, before Prashanth joined the CPI(M). In what has since come under scrutiny, the Travancore Devaswom Board approved the handing over of the gold-clad copper coverings of the Dwarapalaka idols at the entrance to the Sabarimala temple's sanctum sanctorum to sponsor Unnikrishnan Potty for "repairs."

In September 2025, while Prasanth was heading the Board, the coverings were once again entrusted to Potty for another round of repairs. Potty subsequently took them to the Chennai-based firm Smart Creations.

The removal, transfer and handling of the gold-clad copper plates by Potty and Smart Creations triggered what later came to be known as the Sabarimala gold theft case—a controversy that, many political observers believe, also contributed to the LDF's defeat in the 2026 Assembly elections.

The Kerala High Court took suo motu cognisance of the matter after the Special Commissioner for Sabarimala reported that the cladding had been removed by the Travancore Devaswom Board under Prashanth's tenure without prior intimation to the court.

The late former Sabarimala executive officer, Murari Babu, has been named as the first accused in the case. Sponsor Unnikrishnan Potty is the second accused, while Pankaj Bhandari, owner of Smart Creations, is the third accused. Travancore Devaswom Board member Adv. A. Ajikumar has been named the fifth accused. Sabarimala Tantri Kandararu Rajeevaru is the sixth accused, and Thiruvabharanam Commissioner Rajilal is the seventh accused.

The case has been registered under Sections 316(2), 316(5), 336(2), and 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). According to the Special Investigation Team (SIT), all seven accused had direct involvement in the alleged offence. The SIT claims it has obtained strong evidence establishing the role of each of the seven accused, including Prashanth.

Notably, Prasanth has alleged that his inclusion as an accused in the Sabarimala gold theft case is the result of a conspiracy. He added that he suspects there was political interference behind his being named an accused and maintained that he had no close association with Unnikrishnan Potty.

Prasanth also asserted that there had been no objections regarding the events of 2025, and that the only issue raised was that the gold cladding had been taken away without informing the court.

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