In August 2019, the High Commission of Indian in London was informed by India Pride Project that four antique idols (Lord Rama, Sita, Lakshman and Hanuman) were stolen from a temple built in Vijayanagara period in Tamil Nadu and smuggled out of India, may be in the UK.
It was conveyed to the High Commission of India in the UK that the idol of Lord Rama was suspected to be in possession of an individual living in London.
Once the idol was identified by comparing it with relevant records, the matter was taken up with the Art and Antique Unit of the London Metropolitan Police as well as the Idol wing of Tamil Nadu (TN) Police. The TN police sent a comprehensive report confirming that the theft took place in 1978 at the Vishnu temple and also provided the expert opinion about a matching idol with IFP photo archive.
The Art and Antique Unit of the London Metropolitan Police who investigated the matter based on information and documents provided to them, contacted the present owner of the statue and conveyed High Commission’s request to return the statue as it appeared, prima facie, to be a stolen idol from a living temple in India.
The art collector turned out to be a good faith purchaser who carried out due diligence including a thorough a check of Art Loss Register Certificates. The Met Police further found that vendor involved was already dead, so there were no grounds to open any investigation in the UK.
Interestingly, the owner of the Lord Ram’s idol, informed the High Commission and Met Police that he was also in possession of two other idols of Sita and Lakshman, which he has handed over to India House. All the three idols are being transferred to Tamil Nadu Government soon.
On Tuesday, at India House, while receiving the three idols at an event, the High Commissioner HE Gaitri Issar Kumar thanked the individual, who had voluntarily returned all three idols and also thanked the London Metropolitan Police and the Idol Wing of Tamil Nadu Police for their prompt action and positive role in the investigation process leading to the repatriation of the three idols.
The Indian Minister for Culture and Tourism, Prahlad Singh Patel attended the event via video link as the Chief Guest. He congratulated the High Commission for this restitution and thanked the London Met Police and Tamil Nadu Police Idol Wing for their excellent work. He also praised the positive role played by the Archaeological Survey of India, especially over the last six years in getting back pieces of India’s cultural heritage.
The event was also attended by senior officials from Tamil Nadu including the Chief Secretary K. Shanmugam and DG Police JK Tripathi. Speaking on the occasion the Chief Secretary thanked the High Commission for their efforts in making this repatriation successful.
The event was also attended by officers of the Metropolitan Police including DC Usha Evans, who represented the Met Police Hindu Association. Speaking on the occasion, Detective Chief Inspector, Met Police, Tim Wright said, “The Metropolitan Police are proud to have been involved in the return of these Chola bronze statues to India. Not only are they beautiful and historically significant, they are of course of religious importance, and therefore it is particularly gratifying that they are to be returned to the temple from which they were taken. We are delighted to be joined here today by a representative from the Metropolitan Police’s Hindu Association in recognition of this.”
For the past few years, the Government of India has been given a renewed impetus to the protection of India's cultural heritage. Ministry of External Affairs along with the Archaeological Survey of India and India’s law enforcement agencies such as the DRI have been pursuing investigations towards restitution of stolen and smuggled antiquities. Successful restitutions have taken place in recent years from various countries including UK, Germany, France, Australia and the USA.
