BENGALURU: A 15th century bronze idol of Lord Mahavishu was unearthed by Customs sleuth at the cargo wing of the Bengaluru Airport hours before being smuggled out to Malaysia after being declared as a new but replica of antique idols. A Tamil Nadu based antique dealer has been arrested in connection with the idol smuggling attempt.
Sources with the Customs Intelligence Unit (CIU) at Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) said the seizure unfolded on Friday evening when the Customs team grew suspicious about a consignment at the cargo bay that was scheduled to be shipped to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. They opened the packet to find a three feet tall and well polished statue of Lord Mahavishnu made of bronze. "The exporter had declared it as a newly-made bronze antique replica statue. But as the idol had some key characteristics of an antique piece possibly aged over a few hundred years, our team decided to get it inspected by experts in the field," said an investigating officer.
