Audit report in Kerala High Court reveals discrepancies in Guruvayur Devaswom accounts

The Kerala High Court on Wednesday allowed an affidavit filed by the Kerala State Audit Department highlighting financial irregularities in Guruvayur Devaswom accounts, pointing to improper accounting of receipts and expenditures by temple authorities. [Dr PS Mahendra Kumar v State of Kerala & ors] .A Bench of Justices Anil K Narendran and Muralee Krishna S noted that the affidavit contained serious allegations of mismanagement of financial accounts by the Guruvayur Devaswom Managing Committee.It condoned a 71-day delay in filing the affidavit dated May 25, 2024 while granting two weeks for the Guruvayur Devaswom Managing Committee's standing counsel to obtain instructions..Submitted by Senior Deputy Director of the Kerala State Audit Department Rajeev R, the affidavit was filed in response to a petition filed by Dr PS Mahendra Kumar. The plea sought a Court direction to the Devaswom to disclose details of its deposits in co-operative societies, citing concerns over financial mismanagement and recent banking scams in Thrissur district.The affidavit submitted to the Court outlined multiple financial irregularities, mismanagement of temple funds and lapses in cybersecurity protocols, raising serious concerns about the administration of the temples under the Guruvayur Devaswom Board.According to the affidavit, proceeds from the sale of gold and silver lockets were received both in cash and through card transactions and were deposited in two accounts of Punjab National Bank. Collection staff from the bank visited the temple daily to collect cash and issue corresponding credit slips. However, discrepancies were found in the amounts actually deposited into the bank during the financial years 2019-20, 2020-21, and 2021-22, highlighting a shortfall of ₹27,45,900 lakh over three years (2019-2022) from the sale of gold lockets and chains.The affidavit thus pointed out that the temple superintendent, manager and deputy administrator failed to ensure that the collected funds were correctly deposited..The audit further revealed that lack of timely access to bank statements and the Devaswom authorities' failure to comply with 2020 directives to provide weekly statements led to the delay in the detection of discrepancies.Despite repeated audit observations, the affidavit states that the Devaswom continues to prepare only basic receipt and payment accounts without including asset valuations of gold, silver, or land holdings. It additionally highlighted that there was no periodic physical verification of valuable items, further complicating efforts to ensure financial transparency.As of October 5, 2023, the Devaswom had fixed deposits worth ₹1,975.90 crore across various nationalised banks, scheduled banks and cooperative urban banks..Another major concern raised in the affidavit was the installation of CCTV cameras under the Central government's PRASAD scheme.The project, entrusted to Uralungal Labour Contract Co-operative Society Ltd (ULCCS), cost over ₹5 crore. However, the affidavit stated that several defects in the CCTV system were identified during the defect liability period, yet they were not rectified by the contractor.Due to this lapse, the Devaswom had to spend an additional ₹4.05 lakh to replace defective equipment, including UPS batteries. Despite repeated demands, many CCTV cameras and hard disks remain non-functional, posing serious security concerns for the temple, the affidavit stated..Further, the report highlight losses sustained by the Devaswom over delays in constructing the Panchajanyam annex at the temple. Such loss was quantified at over ₹1 crore."Now the said building is in dilapidated condition and expenditure incurred till date has almost become infructuous. An agreement was entered into between the Devaswom and M/s ULCCS Ltd, in 2019 to complete the balance construction with an estimate of Rs.5.14 crores but the work has not started yet.".The department has called for stringent oversight of Devaswom finances and a review of ongoing financial practices to prevent further mismanagement.It also urged the Court to direct the Devaswom to establish clear norms for construction projects funded by external sponsors, as there are concerns over whether these constructions adhere to Public Works Department (PWD) guidelines.