Thiruvananthapuram: Assets Worth Rs 700 Crore Found in Temple’s Secret Rooms
Daijiworld Media Network – Thiruvananthapuram (SP)
Thiruvananthapuram, Jun 30: Six cellars of the local Anantha Padmanabha Swamy Temple, which is being run by a trust of the royal family that had ruled Travancore in the past, are being opened one by one, as per a recent Supreme Court order. The Supreme Court had ordered for opening of these cellars and make a list of items found thereon, while hearing a private complaint. These cellars, which have traditionally remained off limits for anyone, are located underground. The officials completed the task of opening three rooms and listing out the assets and valuables found in these rooms on Tuesday night.
Lord Anantha Padmanabha Swamy continues to be the family deity of Travancore royal lineage, and the members of the royal family continue to pay obeisance to the Lord through special entrance in the temple every morning and evening. A giant idol of Lord Vishnu, found resting on a thousand-hooded Lord Anantha in the form of serpent god, is the unique feature of this temple. The idol is so big that it can only be seen through three different doors provided at the sanctum sanctorum to enable the devotees to have the darshan of the Lord. The temple happens to be not only a pilgrimage centre, but also a tourist destination because of the grand art and architecture found in the temple.
The value of invaluable gold ornaments, utensils, pearls, jewels, bejewelled crowns, golden equipments used for the festivals of the presiding deity, items having tremendous antique value etc., which were recovered from these three rooms, has been put at around Rs 700 crore, sources in the temple said.
This grand temple was built by king of Travancore dynasty, Martananda Verma, in 18th century. In the recent past, the Supreme Court had appointed a seven-member committee which includes two retired judges of Kerala High Court, to open the secret cellars located underground, and list out the invaluable items stored in them. The private complaint had sought more transparency and trustworthiness in the temple administration.
The committee members clarified that their duty is just to list out the items found inside these cellars, and that assessing their value does not come under their purview. However, the temple governing council members put the estimated worth of valuables so far found, at Rs 700 crore. At the same time, scholars having knowledge of archaeology and history have opined that it would be wrong to assess the worth of the valuables without taking into account their antique value.