Financial irregularities in Guruvayoor Devaswom contracts flagged by audit dept, HC seeks response
The audit findings were presented in an affidavit by the Senior Deputy Director of the department's Guruvayoor Devaswom Unit before the division bench of Justice Anil K Narendran and Justice Muralee Krishna S.
The audit findings were presented in an affidavit by the Senior Deputy Director of the department's Guruvayoor Devaswom Unit before the division bench of Justice Anil K Narendran and Justice Muralee Krishna S.
The audit findings were presented in an affidavit by the Senior Deputy Director of the department's Guruvayoor Devaswom Unit before the division bench of Justice Anil K Narendran and Justice Muralee Krishna S.
Kochi: The Kerala High Court has sought a response from the Guruvayoor Devaswom Board within two weeks after the Kerala State Audit Department reported financial irregularities in the awarding of contracts and management of funds by the board.
The audit findings were presented in an affidavit by the Senior Deputy Director of the department's Guruvayoor Devaswom Unit before the division bench of Justice Anil K Narendran and Justice Muralee Krishna S.
The affidavit was submitted in response to a writ petition filed by Dr Mahendra Kumar. The petition, originally filed in 2024, sought reconciled account statements and a comprehensive audit of the temple’s bank accounts for the financial years 2022 and 2023. It also requested the reinstatement of the ‘Q system’ for temple devotees.
The affidavit stated that Guruvayoor Devaswom had fixed deposits of Rs 1,975.90 crore in various banks as of October 5, 2023. It was also revealed that CCTV cameras were installed in and around the temple at a cost of Rs 5.08 crore under the central government’s PRASAD scheme. However, defects were observed during the defect liability period, which the contractor failed to address, leading to an additional expense of Rs 4.05 lakh for replacements.
The affidavit further highlighted concerns over the transparency of software systems used at temple counters. The auditing team was not given access to these systems, limiting their ability to assess accuracy and accountability. Additionally, the temple’s website and mobile applications were not subjected to security audits or certified by the Devaswom’s IT expert committee.
Another issue raised was that the annual accounts of the Devaswom were still being prepared in a customary manner without modern accounting practices. The affidavit stated that temple authorities, including the Temple Superintendent, Temple Manager, and Temple Deputy Administrator, failed to ensure that revenue from the sale of gold and silver lockets was properly accounted for daily. A shortfall in the remittance of gold locket sale proceeds between 2019 and 2022 led to a loss of Rs 27.45 lakh. Delayed bank statements further hindered the detection of this discrepancy.
The affidavit also noted that Devaswom authorities were not providing weekly bank statements for auditing, affecting receipt verification and monthly account preparation, which contributed to fund shortages.
Another irregularity flagged was related to the ‘Construction of Panchajayam Annex’ project. The audit report suggested legal action against the contractor for delays in completing the project. The Devaswom had already paid Rs 87.27 lakh to the contractor, and revenue recovery proceedings were initiated to recover Rs 1.11 crore in losses. However, records quantifying the final loss were not produced for auditing.
The court has directed the Guruvayoor Devaswom Board’s standing counsel to provide a response on these findings within two weeks. The court has scheduled the next hearing for February 21, 2025.
(With LiveLaw inputs.)