Days after UK’s The Telegraph newspaper reported that India will wage a diplomatic campaign to reclaim the Koh-i-Noor diamond and thousands of other treasures from Britain in a “reckoning” with the colonial past, the Ministry of Culture has refuted the report calling it an “overstatement” and said that India will initiate repatriation of objects beginning with “cooperation in manuscripts”.
The Telegraph in its report published on May 12 titled, “India to force Britain into colonial ‘reckoning’ with treasure demands,” claimed citing a source that the Indian government is planning to mobilise its ministerial and diplomatic staff to “secure the return of potentially thousands of artefacts taken to Britain during the days of the empire, in its reckoning with the past.”
It claimed that New Delhi’s campaign would be “the largest repatriation claim faced by the UK, on a scale that would dwarf Greece’s demands for the Elgin Marbles”
It added that the Narendra Modi government is aiming to secure Koh-i-Noor diamond and Amravati Marbles, highlighting that reclaiming the artefacts taken from India is one of the priorities of the Modi government.
Quoting Govind Mohan, Secretary of the Ministry of Culture, The Telegraph claimed that returning antiquities would form a key part of India’s policy-making stressing that the thrust of artefacts’ repatriation stems from PM Modi’s personal commitment.
Reportedly, the Indian government has called the report an “overstatement” saying that while the government is pursuing the restitution of artefacts taken from India, the report is a “significant overstatement” in terms of how it represents the government and its approach to the United Kingdom.
This comes after the first G20 working group meeting was held on February 24, at Maharaja Chhatrasal Convention Centre (MCCC), Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh, wherein India underlined that displaced antiquities must be restored to their country of origin as artefacts have no relevance outside of their cultural contexts. Govind Mohan, secretary, ministry of culture also had laid emphasis on the urgency to work together and protect the shared heritage of G20 nations.
Quoting a representative, Politico reported that Govind Mohan is focused on “low-hanging fruits” such as the return of manuscripts from the UK.
“India remains committed to working with international partners to build holistic and cooperative ties, with our shared history serving as an important but not sole pillar,” the Indian government responded.
It is notable that the Modi government has been working relentlessly to bring back displaced artefacts. Since 2014, the Modi government has brought back more than 200 displaced artefacts.
On Thursday this week, PM Modi noted at the launch of the International Museum Expo in New Delhi that 240 antique relics have been recovered and returned to India in the last nine years, compared to less than 20 for several decades following Independence. Interestingly, during its ten years of rule, the UPA government could bring just one artefact back to the country, according to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
