Retired headload worker Gopan Swami, a deeply religious man who resided at Aralumoodu on the Thiruvananthapuram-Nagercoil highway, was reported missing on January 9. It was his neighbours who approached the police, and when they turned up to investigate, Gopan Swami’s family offered a perplexing explanation: that he had reached the pinnacle of spirituality and attained ‘samadhi’ (died at a chosen spot). The family had secretly buried him there and erected a memorial, which now stands on a small portion of their land, covered by blue tarpaulin and cordoned off by the police. Efforts by the police and the district administration, led by Sub-Collector Alfred OV, to exhume the body have sparked chaos.
The family insists that the memorial cannot be removed and has threatened to die if the district administration proceeds with its plan. The issue has since taken a communal turn, with Hindutva groups like the Hindu Aikya Vedi and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) seizing the opportunity to target Muslims in the neighbourhood, accusing them of wanting the memorial destroyed. The groups have also claimed that the police did not follow proper procedures before trying to exhume the body. Notably, the ward member at Aralumoodu, situated in the Athiyanoor ward of Neyyattinkara, is affiliated to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
When the police arrived at the scene to exhume Gopan’s body on the morning of January 13, acting on the Sub-Collector’s orders, what followed were tense and emotional scenes. Gopan’s wife Sulochana, along with their sons Sanandan and Rajasenan, rushed to the ‘samadhi’, vehemently protesting the exhumation. They shouted and wept, insisting that the body could only be removed over their dead bodies.
Sanandan was heard shouting, “It’s those Muslim extremists! They are attacking Hindu Dharma! Those Muslims…”
He further claimed that Muslims had encroached on the family’s ancestral land. “Now we are being attacked by them,” he said.
The family repeatedly insisted that Gopan had chosen to attain samadhi and had been living as a monk for years. “When I came here that morning, his body was still warm,” Sulochana said. “My son told me it would take time for the body to cool. I went back home. I will not allow his body to be exhumed—he has attained Brahmam (the supreme truth in Hinduism).”
“For the police, this remains a missing person case,” Neyyattinkara Inspector SB Praveen told TNM. “We don’t even know if the individual was buried at the site. All we know is that Gopan is missing.”
Gopan and his family lived in a small house surrounded by a spacious plot of land in Aralumoodu. A significant portion of the compound was sectioned off to accommodate a family-owned temple, which Gopan himself had built.
As a former headload worker, Gopan had once been affiliated with the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), a BJP-linked union, before shifting his allegiance to the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), which is aligned with the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)]. After retiring, he devoted himself to religious rituals, with his family claiming that he had embraced sanyasa (an ascetic life).
On the evening of January 9, some residents noticed a poster outside Gopan’s compound and along the road, announcing that “Gopan Swami” had attained samadhi. Later that day, Ajitha KS, the ward councilor of Athiyannoor, received a phone call from Gopan’s son Rajasenan, who told her that his father had attained samadhi.
“Residents alerted us about the situation, so we filed a missing person case. The next day, we visited the house and took statements from the family,” Inspector Praveen told TNM.
According to Gopan’s family, he had hinted at his intention to attain samadhi two days earlier and had been preparing for it. “Two days ago, he told me he would go somewhere, but he didn’t say where, knowing I’d worry,” said Sulochana.
As per Rajasenan’s version of the events of January 9, Gopan had returned home after the morning pooja at the temple, ate, and explained the rituals of the samadhi to him. “My father took his medication for blood pressure and diabetes, then outlined the steps for the pooja for his samadhi. He walked to the spot opposite our house, within the temple compound, sat down, and performed the rituals. We completed the poojas, and he attained samadhi.”
Rajasenan said Gopan had already arranged for stones to be placed over his samadhi. “Afterward, I brought my mother and wife to the site; they prayed and left. We then buried him,” he added.
When asked if a doctor had confirmed Gopan's death, Sulochana replied, “It is Kailasanathan (Shiva) who decides everything, not a doctor.”
On January 13, when TNM visited the area, a group of men affiliated with the RSS and Hindu Aikya Vedi were heard shouting, “We will not tolerate a Hindu being targeted! This is an attack on Hinduism. The Muslims around here want the land and the temple.”
Sujith, an RSS functionary, also squarely blamed Muslims. “The Muslims here are creating these issues because they want to take over Gopan Swami’s land. We have faced similar problems in the past, and now this is turning into a communal issue. Those Muslims came here to attack this family.”
The Hindu groups, however, would abide by the law, Sujith claimed. “We are not against exhuming the body. Let the police issue the proper orders, console the family, and proceed with it. We are not opposed to Indian law. But the Muslims have tried to ostracise the family because of the temple here. That, we will not allow,” he added.
The police told TNM that a protest by the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) had further provoked Hindu groups, exacerbating the communal tensions. “This region has a fairly equal mix of Hindus and Muslims. The ward has a BJP councillor, so Hindu organisations and Sangh groups are especially active here. There have been communal tensions in the past as well.”
“A few SDPI workers came here on January 12, alleging that Gopan’s death was a cover-up and framing it as a broader social issue. Their involvement agitated the Hindu groups and made the situation worse,” a police officer said.
Several neighbours pointed out that Gopan’s family had strained relationships with many in the area. “They built a temple on their land and held a temple festival a few years ago, collecting donations from everyone. I also contributed. After the festival, we asked for an accounting of the funds, and they refused. That caused a major issue, and we haven’t been on good terms since then. From what I know, Gopan wasn’t healthy enough to walk from his house to the spot where they claim the samadhi took place,” said Santha, a neighbour.
Another neighbour, Ashokan, suggested that the communal tensions were being stirred to obscure the truth. “Now all the Hindu organisations are supporting the family, and the sons are claiming this is an attack on Hindu Dharma. It’s just a cover-up. Who goes into samadhi after taking medication?” he questioned.
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