BANGALORE: The setting is eerie. Amid trophies of mounted animal heads is an ageing and rickety table on which stands an intricately carved, 22kg ivory idol of Lord Ganesha. His abode is a cardboard box in a godown on CID premises. Artistic value apart, monetarily the idol is worth nearly Rs 1 crore.
Stepping into the godown of the forest cell of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is like entering the land of wildlife smuggling. Leopard and tiger pelts, exquisite ivory idols, carved tusks, sandalwood pieces and trophies (preserved animal busts) are stored in the same bags they were confiscated from smugglers. They are stored only to be produced before the court as evidence when the case eventually comes to trial. The bags are often lowquality backpacks, cloth suitcases or gunny bags. Additional Director General of Police K S N Chikkerur says that since 2000, the police stations have been asked to store such confiscated goods in their respective police stations for want of space. "They come under the Wildlife Protection Act and are the property of the Court. Regardless of the outcome of the case, the goods would then become the property of the Central and State Government," he says.
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