Achuthanandan kicks up dust with 'smuggler' jibe at ex-royal

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala opposition leader V S Achuthanandan has charged Marthanda Varma, head of the erstwhile royal family of Travancore, with smuggling jewels from the Padmanabhaswamy Temple. [caption id=“attachment_66433” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Lashing out at the royal family, he said they are trying to spread canards that evil would fall if the unopened ‘kallara’ (vault) B is opened. Reuters”]  [/caption] “Don’t you know that Marthanda Varma goes to the temple every day?” Achuthanandan said. “When he returns, he carries a tiffin box. The perception is that he brings ‘payasam’. But it is not that. Instead, it is jewels.” Marthanda Varma oversees the functioning of the richest temple in Kerala through an executive committee. “I was told this by one of the former priests, who lost his job after he found out,” said the former CM. Lashing out at the royal family, he said they are trying to spread canards that evil would fall if the unopened ‘kallara’ (vault) B is opened. His revelation comes at a time when the former royal family moved the Supreme Court on Friday, seeking orders not to open vault B, as such a step would hurt the sentiments of many devotees. “Now, they are trying to say baseless things that vault B should not be opened,” the minister said. Agencies