Plea seeks seizure of idols from Gujarat

Says they are in a museum run by Sarabhai Foundation

Bronze idols of Raja Raja Cholan and his queen Lokamahadevi.

Advocate ‘Elephant’ G. Rajendran has filed a writ petition in the Madras High Court seeking a direction to the Idol Wing-Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to take possession of 36 idols, three bronze lamps and eight other artefacts from a museum run by the Sarabhai Foundation at Ahmedabad in Gujarat.

The petition is expected to be listed for admission before a Division Bench of Justices R. Mahadevan and P.D. Audikesavalu on Thursday. The foundation in Gujarat was being run by the family members of Vikram Sarabhai, who is regarded as the father of India’s space programme.

‘Forcibly taken’

His 94-year-old sister Gira Sarabhai had already approached the court accusing the Idol Wing CID sleuths of having forcibly taken away two icons from the museum on the basis of a wrong claim that they were the ancient idols of Raja Raja Chola and queen Nambiratiyar Logamatheviyar of Brihadeeswarar Temple in Thanjavur.

Ms. Sarabhai had contended that the foundation was in possession of the two idols since 1942 and they were not the ones that were reportedly stolen from Thanjavur in the late 1960s.

Ownership claim

Stating that the two idols were actually owned by S. Gopalachari, former Diwan of the State of Travancore, she said on August 16, 1940, Gautam Sarabhai, brother of Vikram Sarabhai, entered into a sale agreement with the then Advocate General of State of Madras S. Gopal Swaminathan and purchased 36 icons [including the two under contention], three brass lamps and eight stone articles.

However, asserting that there was no Advocate General by the name of Gopal Swaminathan during 1940, the petitioner said the idols and artefacts in the possession of the foundation appeared to have been those that were stolen from various temples in the State.

Therefore, it was necessary to restore them to the respective temples, he contended.