Major theft at Nizam Museum in Hyderabad
The showcases lack sensors which could have tipped off the authorities.
Hyderabad: Unidentified persons broke into the Nizam Museum at Purani Haveli on Sunday evening and made away with valuables including a three-tier golden tiffin box and a golden cup. The theft was discovered when officials opened the museum on Monday morning. The museum did not have burglar alarms, police commissioner Anjani Kumar said. The showcases lack sensors which could have tipped off the authorities.
They carried away a three-tier golden tiffin box, a golden cup embedded with ruby and emeralds, a spoon and saucer with a tray belonging to the Nizam VII Mir Osman Alli Khan. Museum’s security head Syed Ali said the items were ‘priceless’. The museum is run by the Nizam Trust in Purani Haveli, and features gifts presented to Nizam VII Mir Osman Ali Khan during the silver jubilee celebrations of his rule in 1936. The men turned the CCTV cameras away. The time stamp on the camera showed 5.30 pm, said Mr Ali.
CCTV footage showed the silhouette of one man, but the police said they did now know how many had committed the theft. On Monday morning, the museum team headed by administrative officer Shoukat Hussain opened the place around 9.15 am as usual and found that the 20-ft ventilator just above the wardrobe, was broken. “The men scaled the wall behind the museum and broke the glass of the ventilator and entered the first floor with the help of ropes,” an official said.