Thiruvananthapuram:  Huge security had been lined up at Kerala’s Padmanabhaswamy temple this morning for the much-anticipated opening of the secret “Vault B.” However, at the last minute, the Supreme Court in Delhi postponed the procedure, because of conflicting views on whether the contents of the vault should be photographed. The court will discuss Vault B on July 14.
The temple in Kerala’s capital, Thiruvananthapuram, honours Lord Vishnu and has become world-famous in the last few weeks because of the jaw-dropping treasure that has been found in its secret chambers. Gold, silver, diamonds and other jewelry adding upto 1 lakh crores were found in five of the six vaults at the temple. Most of the valuables are believed to have been deposited by the Travancore royal family. (Read: Foreign media on Kerala temple)
The secret chambers are being opened under close supervision of retired judges and members of the temple trust after a local lawyer challenged the security and management of the temple.
24-hour security and a special police control room have been set up by the Kerala government to guard the temple.
Earlier this week, the Supreme Court ordered that the treasure will be photographed and filmed, though the images are to be used for recording the valuables and not for public consumption.  However, descendants of the royal family, some of who are trustees of the temple, are worried that filming the temple, and in particular the idols, violates religious sentiment and protocol.