Antique smuggling racket unearthed

Now, with Ghia and Rajput in the net, the policemen are suddenly staring at a racket bigger in proportion than they ever imagined, involving antiques worth crores being smuggled out of the state.

The breakthrough came when the SHO of Vidyadhar Nagar police station, Ram Singh, received a phone call on June 6. The caller had specific information regarding a deal that was going to be struck in a city park. Four men were arrested that evening. Since, the special team has arrested seven people, including suave businessman Ghia and idol thief Rajput.

For the past 30-odd years, Ghia has struck deals while Rajput has scouted the desert state and stolen idols from temples. Ghia is accused of operating the antique smuggling racket from his handicraft shop on the Amer road leading out of Jaipur to Delhi. During raids on the premises, police found documents and catalogues indicating a link with leading auction houses.

‘‘During interrogation, Ghia has mentioned that he has done business with big auction houses like the Christie’s and the Sotheby’s. We are looking into his claims,’’ says Srivastav, adding that before they went for the kill his team scanned art books, the internet and held detailed discussions with experts on the issue. A list of over 300 FIRs regarding idol thefts lodged in different parts of Rajasthan was compiled, teams were sent to neighbouring states and hours spent surfing the Internet.

In a recent raid, police recovered 17 rare idols and sculptures belonging to the 10th and 11th centuries. A case will be registered with the help of an ASI team which will help identify antiques that have illegally reached auction houses abroad.