Tue Oct 07 09:52:52 UTC 2025: ## Summary:

The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) has suspended B. Murari Babu, the current Deputy Devaswom Commissioner, pending investigation for allegedly misreporting gold-plated sculptures as copper plates in a 2019 report while he was the Sabarimala Administrative Officer. The TDB considers this a serious lapse. Babu defends his report, stating the base metal was copper and he followed proper procedures.

## News Article:

**Gold-Plated Sculpture Report Lands Official in Hot Water: Travancore Devaswom Board Suspends Deputy Commissioner**

**THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, October 7, 2025 (The Hindu) –** The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) has suspended B. Murari Babu, currently the Deputy Devaswom Commissioner for Haripad, pending an investigation into allegations of a serious lapse in a report he submitted while serving as the Sabarimala Administrative Officer in 2019.

The suspension, announced today, stems from a report Mr. Babu filed on June 17, 2019, in which he allegedly recorded the gold-plated Dwarapalaka sculptures on either side of the Sabarimala shrine as copper plates. The TDB, after a meeting on Tuesday, deemed this action “a serious lapse” on the official’s part.

Mr. Babu, speaking to the media, defended his report. “I recorded the sculptures as copper because the base metal was copper, over which the gold-plating was done,” he explained. “If I had recorded it as gold, it would mean the entire material was gold, which it was not. The processes were all followed properly. I had given only a preliminary report, based on which higher officials and technical experts arrived at the final decision. As an employee in the service of the Devaswom Board for the past 30 years, I accept this action.”

The investigation is expected to shed further light on the circumstances surrounding the 2019 report. The TDB has not yet announced a timeline for the investigation.

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