Chandigarh, December 10
Heritage furniture from the city will be put up for auction in France tomorrow.
Items that are likely to go under the hammer include a small student desk, easy arm chair and a pair of armless easy chair, all designed by Swiss architect Pierre Jeanneret. The items are likely to fetch over Rs35 lakh.
In a letter to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Ajay Jagga, Member, Heritage Protection Cell, Chandigarh, has sought an inquiry into the auction of heritage furniture being organised by Maison RC, Marseille, France, on December 11. Jagga stated that the Indian Embassy in France should be asked to step in and with the help of law-enforcing agencies there, initiate an inquiry into the auction of heritage items from Chandigarh. It should be probed as to how these banned items had gone beyond the territory of India, he added. “The UN may also be approached reminding its international commitment to the UNESCO to combat trafficking of cultural objects,” he said. He requested the minister to look into the matter so that the auction of smuggled heritage items could be stalled.
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