The Tamil Nadu Idol Wing CID on Wednesday, August 24, said it has initiated steps to retrieve six Chola-era bronze idols, stolen from the Nareeswara Sivan temple, Veeracholapuram in Kallakurichi district back in the 1960s, and currently kept at various museums in the United States of America. A letter of request to return the stolen idols was sent "through proper channels" under an agreement between India and the USA concerning Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters, the Idol Wing said.
The idols were successfully traced to the US recently with the help of the images available at the Indo-French Institute, Puducherry (IFP), which had documented nine bronze sculptures in 1956. Of them, seven were stolen five decades ago. The institute had provided images of antique Panchaloha idols (idols of Hindu deities made with five metal alloys) of Tripuranthakam, Thirupurasundari, Nataraja, Dakshinamurthy Veenadhara, and Saint Sundarar with his wife Paravai Natchiyaar.
The theft came to light after a city advocate G Rajendran referred a complaint with the Idol Wing CID in 2018 stating that the idols of Tripurantaka, Thiripurasundari and some other idols of Nareeswara Sivan temple were stolen 30 years ago and requested the police to take appropriate action to recover them. Based on his complaint, cases under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Antiquities and Art Treasures Act of 1972, were registered, a press release said.
The web images of the idols downloaded from the official website of Cleveland Museum of Art, Ohio, Christie's Auctions and Private Sales and Freer Sackler Museum of Art were sent to the Director and Chemical Examiner to Government, Forensic Sciences Department through additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kumbakonam, for comparison. The Director, after examining the photos, confirmed that the images of the idols obtained from IFP were the same as those downloaded from the above websites, the Idol Wing said.