Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala High Court on Wednesday observed that the SIT probe into the alleged misappropriation of gold from the Sabarimala temple was progressing well and currently, there was no need to hand over the investigation to the CBI.
The observations by the court came while hearing a batch of petitions, including one by BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar, seeking the handing over of the probe to the CBI.
A bench of justices Raja Vijayaraghavan V and K V Jayakumar said it was aware of the work being done by the Special Investigation Team (SIT), which was putting in a lot of effort, according to court sources.
The observations will be a setback for the Congress-led UDF opposition, which has been claiming that the Chief Minister's Office was interfering and pressurising the SIT, leading to a delay in the filing of the charge sheet.
The UDF has been holding protests in the state Assembly on the issue and disrupted the House on Tuesday and Wednesday by raising the matter.
At the same time, the court expressing a positive outlook regarding the probe, supports the ruling LDF's claims that the investigation was progressing properly.
The bench also said that the SIT was a good unit with competent officers and they will not demoralise them by questioning their work, the sources said.
The court also pointed out that it was actively monitoring the investigation and was aware of all the things unearthed by the SIT, they said.
The SIT is probing two cases related to the alleged misappropriation of gold from the Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) idols and the door frames of the Sreekovil (sanctum sanctorum) of the Lord Ayyappa shrine in Sabarimala.
It has made 12 arrests in the cases till date, and of the arrested accused, three are out on statutory bail due to the delay in filing the charge sheet within the stipulated time of 90 days from arrest.
Prime accused Unnikrishnan Potty has also secured statutory bail in both cases and is expected to be released once he executes the bail bonds.
The observations by the court came while hearing a batch of petitions, including one by BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar, seeking the handing over of the probe to the CBI.
A bench of justices Raja Vijayaraghavan V and K V Jayakumar said it was aware of the work being done by the Special Investigation Team (SIT), which was putting in a lot of effort, according to court sources.
The observations will be a setback for the Congress-led UDF opposition, which has been claiming that the Chief Minister's Office was interfering and pressurising the SIT, leading to a delay in the filing of the charge sheet.
The UDF has been holding protests in the state Assembly on the issue and disrupted the House on Tuesday and Wednesday by raising the matter.
At the same time, the court expressing a positive outlook regarding the probe, supports the ruling LDF's claims that the investigation was progressing properly.
The bench also said that the SIT was a good unit with competent officers and they will not demoralise them by questioning their work, the sources said.
The court also pointed out that it was actively monitoring the investigation and was aware of all the things unearthed by the SIT, they said.
The SIT is probing two cases related to the alleged misappropriation of gold from the Dwarapalaka (guardian deity) idols and the door frames of the Sreekovil (sanctum sanctorum) of the Lord Ayyappa shrine in Sabarimala.
It has made 12 arrests in the cases till date, and of the arrested accused, three are out on statutory bail due to the delay in filing the charge sheet within the stipulated time of 90 days from arrest.
Prime accused Unnikrishnan Potty has also secured statutory bail in both cases and is expected to be released once he executes the bail bonds.
