Convicted BJP Leader Ajitkumar Seen at Modi's Election Rally in Thiruvalla

Thiruvalla: A man convicted by a court in a temple fraud case was among the prominent figures present at the NDA election campaign rally in Tiruvalla, attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. T R Ajitkumar, a BJP state committee member and the party's Kollam district Prabhari, who was recently convicted by the Pathanamthitta Sub Court in connection with the misappropriation of funds from the Trichendamangalam Mahadeva Temple at Adoor Peringanad, was conspicuously present on the dais.

The conviction was handed down just days ago. The court has ordered recovery of Rs 12,09,141 — the amount stolen from the temple — from the properties of the accused.

The case pertains to the period between 2016 and 2017, when the temple was administered by the Mahadeva Vilasam Haindava Sangham. Ajitkumar, who served as president of the body, along with secretary A V Anu and treasurer T N Sadashivan, withdrew Rs 24,61,400 from the temple treasury under the pretext of purchasing teak wood for the construction of the temple's 'namaskaramandapam'. A subsequent management committee, however, found that the actual expenditure on teak amounted to only Rs 12,52,259, exposing a discrepancy of over twelve lakh rupees.