The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Kerala government to suggest steps to protect the sacred ornaments of Lord Ayyappa at Sabarimala.
The observation from the court came after it noted the dispute between two factions in the Pandalam royal family, which is the custodian of the sacred ornaments of the Sabarimala temple.
A Bench headed by Justice N.V. Ramana and comprising Sanjiv Khanna and Krishna Murari asked senior advocate Jaideep Gupta, representing the Kerala government, to come up with suggestions to safeguard the ornaments and scheduled the matter for further hearing on February 7.
The court said that the jewellery does not belong to the erstwhile royal family but Lord Ayyappa, and it may appoint a responsible person for its safe custody.
The court observed that there is a dispute between the family members and as a result “why should we not allow the ornaments to be kept in the safe custody of a responsible person”. Kerala government counsel contended that the State could take a decision in the matter.
Raja Raja Varma, a member of the former royal family, moved an application for impleading in the pending matter and sought directions to access the jewellery, kept in custody of the secretary of the Pandalam Kottara Nirvahaka Sangham, to the family’s senior members. He contended that high-ranking officials of the association may misappropriate the sacred jewels.