Down a fort, now under the ground? Cops of two states search for 3,500-kg cannon

Giriraj Prasad, the SHO of the Hindaun Sadar Police Station, says the Shivpuri police told them they had received leads that the cannon, dating back 400 years, had been brought to Gavda Meena.

The cannon, displayed in the fort’s Open Kacheri complex, is believed to have been removed during the night of July 15-16. (Express photo enhanced using AI)

“Police and administrative teams are excavating several locations. More than 50 police personnel are involved in this, with others deployed across the village for security,” says Prasad, adding that every heap where the soil looks freshly disturbed is being investigated. “We are looking at places where fresh soil is visible, or any other suspicious location. On Wednesday, the operation continued until night.”

On Thursday, when the search went on from 9 am to 2 pm, at least five to six suspected locations were searched.

The race is against time, as authorities hope to find the heritage cannon before it makes its way to the organised antiquities trafficking network.

Meanwhile, the red-faced Madhya Pradesh authorities are trying to put the dots together on how the heist was pulled off from the Narwar Fort which, to top it, is located on a 3,000-ft-high steep hill. Dated 16th Century and believed to be a rare artillery piece belonging, the cannon was displayed in the ‘Open Kachahari’ complex of the fort.

On paper, six guards are deployed for security of the fort – four during the day and two at night. However, the night guards were reportedly missing. During questioning, one of them indicated to investigators that even if he had been around, he could have done little. They lack even basic facilities such as lighting, torches or security equipment, he said.

A joint inspection by the Madhya Pradesh State Archaeology Department and police recovered mattresses, quilts, iron pipes, drag marks and tyre impressions from the crime scene and along the difficult rear approach to the fort.

Based on that, the investigators believe the thieves wrapped the cannon in mattresses and quilts to protect it from damage and reduce the noise as it was handled, then used a bearing-fitted iron trolley to lower the cannon down the hill, and put it onto a transport vehicle waiting below. There is a bustling town in the lower ranges of the hill, but no one appears to have noticed a cannon.

MP’s poor record

The Narwar Fort theft is the latest in a long series of heritage crimes in Madhya Pradesh, a state known for its rich collection of medieval temples, forts, sculptures and archaeological monuments.

Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) records show the state has topped the country in antiquity thefts from protected monuments over several decades now, besides vandalism. While some have been recovered, many continue to remain missing, and are suspected to have been trafficked to domestic and international markets.

Most of the thefts have been reported from northern Madhya Pradesh, particularly districts such as Gwalior, Morena and Guna. The artefacts stolen include brass finials from the tomb of Mohammed Ghaus, a carved lattice (jaali) from the Man Singh Palace, sculpted heads of Jain Tirthankaras, and from Morena’s Shiv Temple, intricately carved sculptures. In Guna district, repeated thefts from the Khinniwala Temple and government sculpture sheds were reported between the early 1980s and late 1990s.

Among the oldest missing artefacts is a Shivlinga from the Asirgarh Fort in Burhanpur, stolen in 1978 and never recovered.

Several thefts have involved dismantling portions of protected monuments themselves, including doorframes, lintels, ornamental pillars, panels and brass pinnacles. At the Mahadeo Temple in Khandwa, multiple brass pinnacles disappeared in a single year.

Among the successful recoveries have been a dancing Ganesha sculpture from Sidhi, a Vishnu-Lakshmi panel from Jabalpur, the Jain Tirthankara heads stolen from Gwalior Fort and the Parshvanath idol from Udayagiri.

The dugout

A small village of about 1,500 people, Gavda Meena is mostly inhabited by the Meenas, who are a Scheduled Tribe community in Rajasthan.

The residents are not too thrilled about being the focus of the hunt for the cannon, with the rising agitation causing cautious authorities to wrap up operations in the afternoon on Thursday.

An official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said police have called in additional forces to be on the safe side. “Villagers are angry that they are being defamed without any cause. No one has been arrested and no such artefact has been found in the area so far,” the official said.

On Friday, the authorities hope to resume the search.