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As many as 105 persons were trafficked The relics were returned to India by the US and will return to India soon, officials say. The ceremony for returning these items was held at the Indian Consulate in New York on Monday.
Officials say the 105 artifacts represent a wide geographic spread of their origin in India. They add that about 50 artifacts are related to religious subjects (Hinduism, Jainism and Islam) and the rest have cultural significance.
The objects to be returned as part of this batch span a period of 1,600 years – from the first century BC to the fifteenth century AD, and carry great historical and market value, even if their true value has not been ascertained, officials say. These include a 1st century BCE Yakshi clay tablet, stolen from ‘East India’; red sandstone dancing Ganesha from the 9th century, originating in central India; Kubera from the 10th century, also belonging to central India, and many other valuable antiquities and objects in media such as marble, terracotta, and sandstone. Most of these, they say, were smuggled abroad illegally by imprisoned antiques dealer Subhash Kapoor.
Once the objects arrive in India, the ASI (which operates under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture) also decides whether to return the object to its original place, hand it over to the concerned state government, or display it in a museum dedicated to repatriated antiquities at Delhi’s Purana Qila.
An official from ASI’s Department of Antiquities said, “When any artifact of Indian origin is found in a foreign country, it is first verified by ASI in that country or on arrival in India. Experts check it on the basis of their knowledge, iconography and signs of wear.” However, there is no time limit for this process, Asthana said.
Recently, during his official visit to the US, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed this Happy with America’s decision to return more than 100 stolen artifacts to India. I am glad that the US government decided to return from India more than 100 artifacts that were stolen from us. These effects have reached the global markets. I express my gratitude to the US government for this, Modi said.
These relics of Indian origin have reached the international market through right or wrong paths, Modi said, but America’s decision to return them to India shows the emotional bond between the two countries. The Ministry of Culture will sign a cultural property agreement with the United States for the “smooth return” of all these smuggled antiquities out of the country. Officials said India is also looking forward to signing such an agreement with the UK.
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