The UK-based collector behind the handover was described as a lover of Indian artwork and tradition
London:
A set of three idols of Lord Rama, Sita and Lakshmana, stolen from a temple in Tamil Nadu many years in the past, have been restored to the Indian authorities on Tuesday after a collector voluntarily supplied at hand it again on discovering their true historical past.
The theft dates again to 1978 and led to an investigation by the Idol Wing of the Tamil Nadu Police working together with colleagues within the Metropolitan Police in London.
The unnamed collector, who had acquired the statues in good religion, was knowledgeable about their doubtful provenance by the Met Police.
After matching them up with archival images from the 1950s held on the French College in Pondicherry, it was proved that the idols in his possession have been these belonging to the Vijayanagara interval and stolen from Sri Rajagopalaswami Temple at Ananthamangalam in Nagapattinam district of Tamil Nadu.
In a ceremony streamed from India Home in London in line with the restrict on gatherings because of the COVID-19 restrictions, clergymen from Sri Murugan Temple in London performed a brief non secular ceremony for his or her handover to India.
“In the present day marks the profitable completion of the search and rescue operation of those very stunning idols, which have been consecrated and worshipped aspect by aspect for years. We needed to make sure these deities have been dealt with with due reverence and propriety earlier than they’re shipped again to India,” mentioned Indian Excessive Commissioner to the UK Gaitri Issar Kumar.
“On behalf of the federal government of India, I hope this can encourage museums and collectors to rigorously look and test their collections and assist us restore deities that belong to the folks of India and have been worshipped for hundreds of years,” she mentioned.
The UK-based collector behind the handover, who has chosen to remain nameless, was described as a lover of Indian artwork and tradition.
Addressing the digital occasion, officers from the state authorities of Tamil Nadu praised his voluntary intervention and expressed the hope that no additional motion can be taken in opposition to him.
“The voluntary handover of those idols spotlight two enforcement points: the necessity for efficient communication and dialogue, and the right documentation of all cultural heritage, which might not solely act as a deterrent to thefts but additionally assist as proof with out which the result of this case could have been very completely different,” mentioned Tim Wright, from the Metropolitan Police.
Minister of Tradition and Tourism Prahlad Singh Patel, connecting just about to the occasion from Delhi, welcomed the repatriation of the statues, which he mentioned was amongst over 40 “priceless” stolen artefacts restored to India since 2014.
He additionally revealed that documentation from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and different specialists has been collated for the British Museum as a part of efforts to hunt the repatriation of one other idol which belongs in India.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV workers and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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