Heritage table goes up in smoke

Amit Sharma

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 7

The heritage table designed by French architect Le Corbusier, which was stolen from the storeroom of the Government College of Art, Sector 10, was burnt by scrap dealers after the prime accused, Faquir Chand, rejected the table claiming that it was not a heritage item.

Fifteen heritage chairs and a table designed by the French architect were stolen from the college on the night intervening January 18 and 19. The theft came to light the next morning.

Two women, Usha, alias Sweety, and Sunita, alias Shakila, both residents of Sector 25, entered the college campus and broke the locks of the storeroom. The women brought the furniture out of the storeroom and called Anil Kumar, who owns an auto-rickshaw, to transport the stolen furniture.

The accused, Anil Kumar, along with Sunil Kumar and Rajesh, arrived at the spot and transported the furniture and sold it to Faquir Chand. Sources in the investigation team said Faquir Chand, who used to buy heritage furniture, rejected the table claiming that it was not a heritage item.

The sources said after the theft of furniture came to light, Sunil Kumar, who was also a scrap dealer, handed over the table to his brother and asked him to destroy it fearing that it could invite trouble.

The sources said the interrogation of the two women revealed that they were active in northern sectors of Chandigarh and primarily focused in these areas for thefts. “The women have denied any role in the theft at Le Corbusier Centre in Sector 19 reported a few months ago. However, we are still probing their role in the theft,” said a police source.

The two women were produced in court, which remanded them in one-day police custody.