New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art to return 15 sculptures to India after court orders seizure

Famous for the yearly fundraising gala that sees celebrities descending from across the planet, the Metropolitan Museum of Art has announced it will be returning 15 sculptures to India. The decision comes in the backdrop of the New York Supreme Court issuing a search warrant against the museum after it was revealed that notorious smuggler Subhash Kapoor had sold over 77 Indian antiquities to it.

In a statement, the Metropolitan Museum of Art said it was reviewing its dealings with the 'suspected' dealers and that it had been in touch with the Government of India to 'resolve' the matter.

“The Museum is committed to the responsible acquisition of archaeological art and applies rigorous provenance standards both to new acquisitions and to works long in its collection. The Museum is actively reviewing the history of antiquities from suspect dealers. The Museum values highly its long-standing relationships with the government of India and is pleased to resolve this matter," read the statement.

The Met added it had 'contacted Homeland Security about its works from Kapoor in 2015' and was 'pleased to be acting on this matter as a result of the criminal investigation into Subhash Kapoor by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office'.

According to reports, Justice Felicia A. Mennin of the NY Supreme Court last month issued the search warrant against 15 items, supplied by Kapoor to the museum. She had given 10 days to the NY Police Department to seize the artefacts. However,before NYPD could proceed, the Met announced it was handing over the artefacts to their country of origin.

The items include an 11th-century sandstone Celestial Dancer (Apsara) from the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, valued north of $1 million and a first-century BCE Yakshi Terracotta from the eastern Indian state of West Bengal amongst others.

Subhash Kapoor, the smuggler was sentenced to 10 years in prison by an Indian court under Sections 411 (dishonestly receiving stolen property), 414 (assisting in the concealment of stolen property) and 120 (b) (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code.

Kapoor was one of the most prolific art dealers in the US up until the lid over his criminal acts was blown up. He has been accused of selling countless artefacts that wereplundered from temples and ruins and archaeological sites in India.

(With inputs from agencies)

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