What Potty Tied on Sonia’s Wrist Was a Sacred Thread, Claims Congress Leader

Thiruvananthapuram: As the controversy surrounding Sonia Gandhi’s meetings with Unnikrishnan Potty deepens, KPCC General Secretary B. R. M. Shfeer has come forward with a bizarre justification, in an apparent attempt to shield the Congress leadership.

The issue erupted after photographs surfaced showing Potty— the prime accused in the Sabarimala gold theft case—tying something on Sonia Gandhi’s wrist during a visit to her official residence in Delhi. Responding to questions raised over the images, Shafeer claimed that the object was not gold but a consecrated sacred thread blessed at Sabarimala. According to him, the thread was given to Sonia Gandhi when she was suffering from a serious illness and was intended purely as a religious offering.

Speaking during a discussion on a television channel, Shafeer said that while undergoing treatment for a severe health condition, Sonia Gandhi depended not only on medical care but also on faith. He claimed that Unnikrishnan Potty, who was assisting the head priest at Sabarimala at the time, had performed pooja at the temple and brought the sacred thread, which was later tied on her wrist. Shafeer also sought to deflect the controversy by asking whether Sonia Gandhi or UDF convener Adoor Prakash had ever instructed Potty to steal gold from Sabarimala.

He further said that Lord Ayyappa of Sabarimala is regarded by devotees as a deity who answers prayers, and argued that the episode should be viewed in that context.

The explanation, however, has failed to quell the criticism. Unnikrishnan Potty is known to have visited Sonia Gandhi twice at her Delhi residence, and on both occasions, the person alleged to have purchased the stolen gold was also reportedly present. Photographs of these meetings have only deepened the controversy. UDF convener and MP Adoor Prakash, along with MP Anto Antony, were also part of the visiting group.

The matter took a sharper political turn after Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan publicly questioned how an accused in a serious theft case was allowed to meet Sonia Gandhi—who is under Z-category security—and present gifts on more than one occasion. During one visit, Potty reportedly presented a box, while on another he was seen tying something on her hand, triggering speculation that it was a gold bracelet. Shafeer’s insistence that it was merely a sacred thread is being widely viewed as a damage-control exercise rather than a convincing explanation.