Chennai: In a major victory for the Idol Wing Police of Tamil Nadu, notorious idol smuggler Subhash Chandra Kapoor was convicted and sentenced to a 10-year prison term by a special court in Kumbakonam, 292 km south-east of Chennai in the burglary and illegal export of 19 ancient panchaloha idols of deities from the Varadaraja Perumal temple in the year 2000.
Along with the prime accused Kapoor, two of his associates were given a similar 10-year jail term, while the other three were handed out 14-year imprisonment. The special court also slapped a fine of Rs 8,000 each on Kapoor and others. Delivering the verdict, Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Shanmugha Priya found all of them guilty and said, “they had acted in a manner to destroy our cultural heritage.”
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The trial itself was delayed due to the various petitions filed by Kapoor in various judicial fora. Though the burglary at the temple occurred in 2000, the case was filed by the Idol Wing with the Udayarpalayam police in 2008. And, Kapoor being a US national placed hurdles in the investigation. But, the Idol Wing pursued and secured in 2011. Meanwhile, six of the stolen idols were recovered.
Besides Kapoor, six others – Sanjivi Asokan, Marichamy, Packiya Kumar, Sriram alias Ulagu and Parthiban - involved in the crime were also arrested. Of them, Kapoor and Packiya Kumar are under incarceration while others are on bail. One more accused, Pichumani, had turned approver. From 2012 to 2016, the trial was held before the Magistrate Court in Jayankondam and then posted before the ACJM, Special Judge for Idol Theft Cases. All of them have been taken to the Trichy Central prison.
With cases pending against him in Germany and the US, both countries have been pressing for his repatriation to them. Germany, which detained him and handed him over to India, has been pressing on this with the External Affairs Ministry. And, recently, the ministry wrote a letter in this regard to Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary V Iraianbu. According to police sources, Kapoor might not face the other cases and could possibly be deported to the US.
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Hailing from a family of antique dealers, he ran the posh 'Art of the Past' gallery at Madison Avenue in Manhattan. The arrest of Kapoor, the biggest antiquity thief, opened the lid on the loot of India's cultural treasures and the international mafia behind it. It also gave an impetus to recover the stolen ones and spurred the TN government to enumerate the statues and idols on a High Court directive.
The trial got expedited when the Madurai bench of Madras High Court, on October 3, dismissed Kapoor's plea for recalling the witnesses for cross-examination and directed that the trial be completed within a month.
