The Kerala High Court on February 13 dismissed a petition filed by Pankaj Bhandari, CEO of Smart Creations, Chennai. He had challenged the legality of his arrest in the alleged Sabarimala gold misappropriation case.
Justice A. Badharudeen pronounced the order. The detailed judgment is awaited.
Allegations in the Gold Misappropriation Case
According to the prosecution, Bhandari conspired with other accused persons, including prime accused Unnikrishnan Potty. The case concerns alleged removal and misappropriation of gold from the Dwarapalaka idols and the gold-cladded doorframes of the Sreekovil at Sabarimala temple.
The prosecution alleges that Potty transported the gold-cladded items to Smart Creations. There, the gold was allegedly stripped despite knowledge that it belonged to the Travancore Devaswom Board.
The Court had earlier heard detailed submissions from the senior counsel representing Bhandari and from the Additional Director of Prosecution before reserving its verdict.
Challenge to Arrest and Communication of Grounds
Authorities arrested Bhandari on December 19. He has remained in custody since then.
Senior counsel for Bhandari argued that officials failed to properly communicate the grounds of arrest to him and his family. The defence claimed that officers did not inform him of the reasons at the time of arrest. It also alleged that his wife received intimation only the following day through email.
The defence further contended that Bhandari does not understand Malayalam, as he resides in Tamil Nadu. Therefore, serving a remand report in Malayalam could not amount to meaningful communication. Counsel also argued that he was denied legal consultation and was not represented by a lawyer during remand proceedings conducted in Malayalam.
State’s Response
The Additional Director of Prosecution refuted these claims. The State maintained that authorities communicated the grounds of arrest to Bhandari and to his staff member, Rajasekharan S., on the same day.
The prosecution also submitted that officials later informed Bhandari’s wife through email.
Bail Status of Other Accused
In related proceedings, Unnikrishnan Potty, N. Vasu, and Murari Babu secured statutory bail from the Court of the Enquiry Commissioner and Special Judge, Kollam. They are currently out of custody.
Last month, the Special Judge granted regular bail to the sixth accused in the Dwarapalaka idols case and to S. Sreekumar, former Administrative Officer of the Travancore Devaswom Board.
Former Thiruvabharanam Commissioner K.S. Baiju also obtained statutory bail in the case concerning alleged misappropriation of gold from the Sreekovil doorframes. However, he remains in custody in a separate case involving alleged theft of gold from the Dwarapalaka idols.
Court’s Oral Observations
During the hearing, the High Court orally criticised the Special Investigation Team for delay in filing the final report. The Court observed that this delay enabled certain accused persons to obtain statutory bail.
Representation
Senior Advocate B. Raman Pillai appeared for the petitioner. He was assisted by Advocates S. Vishnu, V.S. Viswambharan, Naik Chirag Dhananjay, Mathrawala Noopur Vishal, Mahesh Bhanu S., R. Anil, Sujesh Menon V.B., and Lilin Lal.
Case Title: Pankaj Bhandari v. State of Kerala
