7 Chandigarh heritage items to be auctioned in US

Chandigarh, December 11

At least seven heritage furniture items from the city will go under the hammer in the US on December 13 with the auction price of Rs 36.68 lakh.

The artefacts, designed by Pierre Jeanneret, include a pair of folding armchairs, a set of eight office chairs, a coffee table, a lighting desk and a chair, a set of five low stools, a sewing stool and a set of four stools.

Raising concerns over the scheduled auction of the Indian heritage items by the auction house, Wright, in Chicago on December 13, in a letter to Dr S Jaishankar, Union Minister for External Affairs; and Meenakshi Lekhi, Union Minister of State for Culture; Ajay Jagga, a member of the Heritage Items Protection Cell of the Chandigarh Administration, stated that the Ministry of Home Affairs had banned export of Chandigarh furniture designed by Pierre Jeanneret and Le Corbusier by a written order in 2011. Thus the coming auction on December 13 was clearly in violation of the orders of the MHA and Constitutional mandate, he added.

The NITI Aayog, in a recent report on heritage management, has mentioned about Article 253 of the Constitution which enables Parliament to legislate for the implementation of any treaty, agreement or convention with any other country or countries, or any decision, made at any international conference, association or other body. Any such legislation can be enacted even if the subject matter of the legislation is an item in the State List of the Constitution of India.

The Niti Aayog has also mentioned: “We should be aware of the international conventions that are relevant to the protection and conservation of cultural heritage and to which India is a signatory.” But still, heritage items are being auctioned every month in foreign countries, it added.