500-year-old Lord Hanuman idol stolen from TN to be repatriated to India soon: Culture Min

An idol of Lord Hanuman that was built between 14th and 15th centuries and was stolen around a dece ago, is set to be brought back to India, Union Culture Minister G Kishan Reddy said on Wednesday. According to Reddy, idol was stolen from Tamil Nu's Ariyalur district and was later smuggled abro. Notably, idol was built during period of Vijayanagara empire and was found in possession of a private buyer in Australia.

Recently, statue was returned to Indian High Commissioner Manpreet Vohra at Canberra by Australian Chargé d’Affaires Michael Goldman. As per details proffered by Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), statue belongs to Varharaja Perumal temple located at Vellur village in Ariyalur district. conservation and preservation of cultural-historical monuments in country furr said that idol was stolen on April 9, 2012, along with two or idols--  Sri Devi idol and Boodevi.

US Homeland Security assisted Tamil Nu police in recovering idol

Subsequently, 500-year-old idol was auctioned to a buyer in Australia. Later, during an investigation, it was established that statues belong to India. ASI informed that Tamil Nu Police's Idol Wing was assisted by US Homeland Security.

According to PTI sources, New York-based auction house, which h auctioned idol, and Australian buyer were unaware that statue was stolen from an Indian temple. It is worth mentioning that Indian government has retrieved around 212 artefacts, mainly statues in last seven years. 

(Image: Twitter/@kishanreddybjp)