Antique statue stolen from Mehsana recovered

Gujarat police have solved the case of theft of an antique statue from Mehsana, which had created public outcry in the area as it had religious significance and was venerated by the local people. Cops recovered the statute and arrested Chhapansingh Meena, member of an international gang, from Rajasthan.

Solving the case was a challenge for the police. The entire operation was closely followed by chief minister Narendra Modi. Meena, wanted for over 40 cases in Rajasthan and connected with selling of antique idols, confessed to stealing of the statue of Goddess Chakreshwari from a Jain Derasar

in Visnagar on February 20. The statue is believed to be of 12th century.

Four police teams disguised themselves and conducted undercover operations in Rajasthan to nab Meena. The police teams consisted of personnel from CID (Crime), Detection of Crime Branch and Mehsana police. In-charge director-general of police, Chitranjan Singh, told a press conference: "It was a blind case and we had to start the investigation from zero."

Meena told the police that the statue was stolen by him and was hidden in his farm. Police investigation revealed that Meena is among the dreaded criminals in his area. His wife is a village sarpanch. "It was difficult for us to nab him directly, so an undercover operation was conducted," Singh said.

The statue was found during a construction in Umta village of Mehsana in 2001.