Idols seized on Nepal border
Posted by barunroy on January 17, 2008
The Telegraph, Siliguri, Jan. 16: Customs officials last night seized two rare idols worth Rs 25 lakh from Dulaljote, located around 40km from here on the India-Nepal border.
The preventive wing of Panitanki customs had been tipped off about an attempt to smuggle the idols into Nepal. However, no one was arrested.
“The idols, made of black basalt, are antique pieces,” said Bijoy Sarkar, a reader in the history department of North Bengal University, who evaluated the statuettes.
“One is a Mahisasur Mardini idol from the 10th century. It is 3.6 inches wide, 2.5 inches long, weighs around 280gm and is worth Rs 10 lakh. The other idol is a square-shaped (4.3 inches) Buddha from the 11th century. It weighs around 340 grams and is worth Rs 15 lakh,” added Sarkar, who is a member of the International Council of Museum, Paris.
Yesterday, around 10.30pm, a four-member team led by W.T. Bhutia, the superintendent of the preventive wing of Panitanki customs, had been lying in wait at Dulaljote for two men carrying the idols. However, just as the customs team was closing in on them, the duo got suspicious and fled, throwing the idols away.
The idols, wrapped in a black blanket, were found in a bush around 50m from the border, said customs sources.
The sources added that the smugglers had planned to cross the Mechi on foot (there is little water in the river at this time of the year) to enter Nepal.
“With this seizure, our total haul of antiques from this region in the last one year goes up to Rs 2.2 crore or so (see chart),” said D. Sahu, the joint commissioner of customs, Sikkim and north Bengal region.
A customs official said the open and porous border between India and Nepal was a favourite route of smugglers.
