Vigilance to question officials over tender leak in Keralam’s Sabarimala

A view of the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple. (File photo) The Devaswom Vigilance wing probing the alleged attempt to sabotage the e-auction of shops at Sabarimala will question officials suspected of leaking confidential bid details and examine their call records.Official sources said the Vigilance has already recorded the statements of two contractors who allegedly received the leaked details. The tender process was cancelled after the alleged leak came to light, and a re-tender for the shops will be invited this week.To submit reportThe Vigilance team has been directed to submit its report to the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) within three days, with the findings set to come up for discussion at the board meeting on Wednesday (September 30, 2026). The Devaswom Minister has also warned of stringent action if the probe finds any malpractice.This was the first time an online e-tender and e-auction system was introduced for the 110 shops at Sabarimala. Tenders were invited from September 16 to 23, with the technical evaluation beginning on September 24 and the financial evaluation on September 26.Suspicions raisedThe preliminary investigation has raised suspicions that some officials of the board photographed confidential bid details on their mobile phones and passed them on to regular contractors after the deadline for submitting tenders had expired. The alleged malpractice came to light after a new contractor who had participated in the tender received a threatening message on his phone. Following this, the board cancelled the entire process at the last minute.“In the past, the auctions of shops at Sabarimala used to be conducted directly, with contractors often reaching an understanding among themselves and quoting low amounts. If the board did not accept the bids, they would collectively withdraw from the auction, leaving the shops unsold. The board would then be forced to reduce the amounts by 10% initially and subsequently by 25% to 50% before awarding the shops at lower rates. This had resulted in losses running into crores of rupees for the board,” pointed out a TDB official.The e-tender system, according to him, was introduced to break this parallel lobby that had operated during the direct auctions. “However, the contractors appear keen to retain their influence by securing confidential information from within the system through officials suspected of being part of the syndicate,” the official added.The board has fixed minimum amounts ranging from ₹4 lakh to ₹2 crore for the 110 shops, which include eateries, snack stalls and bookstalls, among others. The tender conditions also stipulated that bids below the prescribed amounts would be disqualified and the contracts awarded to the highest bidders.The board cancelled the e-auction, scheduled for September 29, after finding that the confidentiality of documents related to the tender process had been compromised. It suspects that the leaking of bidding details was part of an attempt to artificially suppress the bid amounts.Fresh e-auctionThe TDB is now set to launch fresh e-auction proceedings. Despite the alleged attempts to manipulate the process, the board has taken a stand that it will not accept even a rupee below the prescribed base rates.The development, however, served a setback for the board, which is already facing allegations over delays in preparations for the Mandala season and various tendering procedures. Tender processes that would normally begin as early as May in previous years were initiated months late this time. Published - September 28, 2026 05:12 pm IST