“New York officials return more than 650 antiquities valued at $14m to India”, The Guardian, April 30, 2026
“Hundreds of antiquities valued at $14m have been returned to India by New York authorities, including some connected to the alleged art smuggler Subhash Kapoor, in a move that is likely to raise the pressure on others to make similar gestures.
The return of 657 antiquities was announced by the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg Jr, on Tuesday, and came as New York City’s mayor, Zohran Mamdani, waded into the historically contentious ownership of the 105.6 carat Koh-i-noor diamond. A spokesperson for the prosecutor’s office said the ceremony had been scheduled months earlier and was not connected to the royal visit.
Mamdani, the city’s first democratic socialist mayor, suggested to reporters that Britain should return the gem – which is set into the Queen Mother’s crown and held in the Tower of London – to India, hours before shaking hands with King Charles on Wednesday at the 9/11 memorial……”
Read full article at theguardian.com
