Sabarimala board suspends clerk over alleged tender-information leak

The Travancore Devaswom Board has suspended a head clerk over the alleged leak of confidential tender details connected with the e-auction of 110 shops at Sabarimala. The official, identified as Rejimon, was suspended after a preliminary inquiry found that tender information had been leaked from his mobile phone to contractors, according to the supplied material. The board had introduced electronic tendering and auction procedures to make the allocation of shops more transparent.

The process was cancelled shortly before its conclusion after allegations of malpractice emerged. The preliminary inquiry found that some board officials had photographed confidential bid details on their mobile phones and passed them to regular contractors after the deadline for tender submissions had expired. The alleged wrongdoing came to light after a new contractor who had taken part in the tender received a threatening message on his phone.

The board said further action would be considered if the inquiry established that additional people were involved. The suspension is an administrative step arising from a preliminary inquiry; the supplied material does not say that a final determination has been made against the official or any other employee. Separately, the board decided to enter into an agreement with Clean Kerala Company for collecting metal scrap from Sabarimala and Pampa.

It cancelled a recent auction for removing scrap from the two locations after receiving several complaints about the process. The decision to use Clean Kerala Company followed a government order authorising the company to collect metal waste from Sabarimala. The material does not provide further details about the complaints, the cancelled auction’s bidders or the value of the proposed scrap-collection agreement.