In UP village, unbroken faith in broken idols

[Hindustani78]

Updated: May 14, 2015 05:59 IST
Two antique idols seized in Tuticorin - The Hindu

Two antique idols with archaeological significance were seized by sleuths attached to the Special Intelligence and Investigation Branch (SIIB) of Tuticorin Customs.

One stone idol weighing 17 kg and a metal idol of 1.48 kg were found concealed in coconut bags, Assistant Commissioner (SIIB), Custom House, Tuticorin, Piyush Bharadwaj, said here on Wednesday.

The officials got access to Chola container freight station here and examined the consignment declared as semi-husked fresh coconuts on a shipping bill.

As per Antiquities and Art Treasures Act, 1972, antique idols should not be exported. Investigations revealed that these idols were to be smuggled to the United Arab Emirates.

S. Paulraj (31) of Tuticorin, proprietor of Nova Impex and exporter, was arrested for the seizure and remanded to judicial custody, he told the media. However, a team of officials from Archaeological Survey of India, Madurai, would identify the value and category of these idols, he said. Mr. Bharadwaj along with SIIB officials, including C. Senthilnathan, R. Murali, Nanda Kumar, K. Ragupathy, S. Selva, Jacob P. George, and S. Thirukumaran, and Superintendents inspected the idols.

 

[Hindustani78]

Panchaloha statue seized; three held - The Hindu
Updated: May 28, 2015 06:05 IST
special police team seized a panchaloha statue of Lord Vinayaka near Kanyakumari on Tuesday night and arrested three persons.

Acting on a tip-off,Kanyakumari district police blocked all the roads leading to Kanyakumari from Thiruvananthapuram. The special team intercepted a speeding car near Kanyakumari and found the 1.5-foot-tall panchaloha statue, weighing around 5.5 kg, concealed in the car. Questioning of the occupants of the car revealed that they were smuggling the statue to Kanyakumari to hand it over to a person in Asaripallam in Nagercoil.

The statue was handed over to the officials of the Government Museum in Kanyakumari. Museum officials said that the statue might be 600 years old.

The arrested were identified as Kannan (30) of Vallakkadavu Muttakkarai, Biju of Karakonam, and Prabhakaran (48) of Kanjiramparai in Kerala.

They were smuggling it to Kanyakumari to hand it over to a person in Asaripallam in Nagercoil

 

[jamahir]

those raiders were ISIS of that century......

or maybe deep thinkers who found idolatry foolish.

Damn barbarians these people. Same centuries ago as to this day

View attachment 214385

not the same... not the same.

 

[Hindustani78]

Stolen panchaloha idol recovered from capital suburb - The Hindu
Updated: August 13, 2015 05:50 IST

The panchaloha idol that was stolen from AnandawalleshwaramSri Mahadevar Temple in Kollam.— Photo C. Suresh Kumar

An antique panchaloha idol of Lord Krishna stolen from Anandawalleshwaram Sri Mahadevar Temple here on August 2 was recovered from a house at Pothencode in Thiruvananthapuram district on Tuesday night. The police arrested Sanal Kumar, 40, in connection with the theft.

Briefing the media, City Police Commissioner P. Prakash said the idol was recovered from the suspect’s house. He said Sanal stole the idol weighing 10.5 kg from the temple between 5.30 a.m. and 5.45 a.m. .

His family learnt about it only when the police reached the place. Mr. Prakash said Sanal did not say whether he contacted anyone for selling the idol.

He said Sanal had no history of idol thefts though he had been arrested for petty thefts earlier, most of them committed around temples. He was arrested for two such cases in Kollam and one was a month ago when he was nabbed by devotees at the Mulangadakam temple in the city .

He is at present out on bail in that case. Mr. Prakash said the police would seek his custody for further investigation after producing him in court on Wednesday.

According to temple records, the idol is more than 400 years old.

It originally belonged to a Brahmin household and was later handed over to one of the rulers of Kollam, who in turn installed it at the Puthukulangara Siva temple.

The area later came to be called Anandawalleshwaram after the installation of an idol of goddess Anandawalli at the temple.

 

[Hindustani78]

Over 200-year-old Kali idol stolen - The Hindu
Rangiya (Assam), November 9, 2015
Updated: November 9, 2015 00:32 IST
An idol of Goddess Kali, which was more than 200-year-old and made of gold worth Rs. two crore, was stolen from a temple here in Assam’s Kamrup (Rural) district, police said today.

Unidentified miscreants broke open the doors of the Jayantipur Kali Temple and stole the idol along with the gold ornaments adorning it last night, the police said. A massive search operation has been launched and a dog squad pressed into service to nab the culprits.

The idol was gifted by Ahom King Lakshmi Singh to Ratneshwar Buzarbaruah, a resident of the area, in 1770 and whose descendants later donated it to the temple. — PTI

 

[Hindustani78]

September 24, 2017 19:07 IST
Updated: September 24, 2017 19:07 IST
http://www.thehindu.com/news/nation...d-stone-idol-found-palani/article19747150.ece
DINDIGUL

A Badrakali idol, about a 1,000 years old, was unearthed at Ravikulam village near Palani on Sunday. A team of archaeological enthusiasts found it from an irrigation channel.

The team head, V. Narayanamurthy, said the idol in sitting posture appeared to be made of granite. The face of the idol, carved in a single stone, was partially damaged. The goddess pressed a demon under her left leg and kept her right leg on the peetam. The asura wore a crown and held a sword in his hand.

An aesthetically decorated jwaala crown adorned the head of the goddess. She held a sword in one hand, skull in another hand and other weapons like a shield, bell, mazhu and a gatha in other hands. The chiselling style and iconography suggested that the one-metre-tall idol belonged to the 10th century, he added.

 

[Hindustani78]

The idol of Satya Venugopala in Salakamcheruvu village of Singanamala mandal in Anantapur district, which had been stolen recently. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

http://www.thehindu.com/news/nation...a-chaturdasi-goes-missing/article19878777.ece

The idol, in ‘ardhanareeshwara’ form, is considered a rarity

On Naraka Chaturdasi, the day that marks the slaying of demon Narakasura by Krishna’s spouse Satyabhama, the theft of their rare statue ‘Satya Venugopala’ points to official and civilian apathy.

Consecrated at Salakamcheruvu of Singanamala mandal in Anantapuram district, the statue in ‘ardhan-areeshwara’ (half male - half female) form is considered a rarity in Sri Vaishnavite iconography. “The idol is themed on ‘Narakasura vadha' and hence Satyabhama’s ferocity is depicted through four hands, holding a bow and arrow, a ‘parashu' (axe) and ‘paasam’ (rope),” says archaeology expert J. Vijayakumar. The statue dating back to the 16th century belongs to the Singanamala region, which is home to several dilapidated and living temples and is hence considered a historical site. Mr. Vijayakumar, who retired as Deputy Director of the State Archaeology department in Telangana, hails from Chittoor district, and has worked extensively in Rayalaseema, besides being the founder member of the INTACH's Anantapuram chapter.

With the flute and cows around, the male half is anybody's guess as ‘Venugopala,’ but the female half was considered for long to be Radha, his favourite companion. During his stint as technical assistant in 1995, it was Mr. Vijayakumar who contradicted the popular belief and identified her as Satyabhama, as Radha never wielded any weapon. Speaking to The Hindu, he admired the idol as one of the best ever sighted in the State. Unfortunately, the statue was found missing recently. “It could have been mistaken by the miscreants as a semi-precious green stone, which it is not,” he says referring to the chemical treatment conducted by INTACH during his tenure.

‘Conduct heritage audit’

A great treasure is lost as its whereabouts are not known yet, he adds, urging the government to take up heritage audit and form village-level heritage committees to stand guard.

 

[Hindustani78]

The panchaloka Vinayaga idol which was seized near Thiruvadanai in Ramanathapuram district on Wednesday. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

http://www.thehindu.com/news/nation...-four-held-ramanathapuram/article21616133.ece

‘It might have been stolen from a Ramnad or Nagapattinam temple’
RAMANATHAPURAM

The Idol Wing police busted an idol smuggling gang by seizing a 1.75-foot-tall panchaloha idol of Lord Vinayaga and arresting four persons at Achankudi village under Thiruvadanai police limit on Wednesday night.

Inspector General of Police (Idol Wing) A.G. Pon Manickavel, assisted by the district police, seized the idol kept in a car and arrested the gang members after a hot chase as they tried to escape from the police.

“We chased and arrested four people, while one managed to give a slip,” Mr. Pon Manickavel told The Hindu. He said the idol, believed to have been made in the 13th century (Viajayanagar empire period), might have been stolen from a temple in Ramanathapuram district or Nagapattinam district three years ago.

The Lord Vinayaga idol, in standing posture, weighed 39.39 kg and had both its tusks cut, he said, adding the gang members were expecting a Madurai-based buyer who had links with international smugglers to hand over the idol.

The IG was assisted by Vijayakumar, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Thiruvadanai, two Inspectors and a police team. Mr. Pon Manickavel said he had been tracking the gang for about six months after he received specific information that they were planning to smuggle the idol. Enquiries revealed that the ‘Madurai man’ had offered to buy the idol for ₹3 crore.

The arrested were identified as M. Thangapandi (38) from Velipalayam in Nagapattinam, who was involved in idol smuggling cases, K. Amjath Khan (30) from Pudukottai, N. Riswan (30) and N. Syed Abudahir (25), both from Thiruvadanai. The police also seized a car used by the gang.