Kolkata: Kasba ivory smuggling den raided; woman, dad in net

KOLKATA: The arrest of a father-daughter duo from south Kolkata's Kasba
neighbourhood blew the lid off an ivory smuggling racket with links to
both Kerala in the south and Kathmandu across the border.

The arrested, who hail from Kerala, used to source elephant tusks from
the southern state before engaging sculptors to make statuettes and
jewellery that were then shipped to Nepal. There, the ivory items were
reportedly auctioned to international buyers for crores.

Acting on a tip-off, officers from the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence
tracked a sedan that one Sudheesh Chandra Babu had boarded at the
airport after arriving from Kottayam in Kerala. In his baggage were two
elephant tusks. His daughter Amitha, who was at the airport to receive him, was also in the car. A statement issued by DRI said that the total value of ivory/ivory idols and tusks of elephants that were seizure adds up to more than Rs 1 crore.

The DRI team intercepted the car while it was on the way to the Kasba address. The initial search revealed the tusks. Later during interrogation, Sudheesh revealed that he had come to Kolkata four years ago after cops in Kerala started looking for him. He had rented a house in Kasba. His daughter had joined a year later and they had started the business. Sudheesh was accused of poaching an elephant in Idamalayar forest in Kerala.

The ensuing raid on the three-storied house in Kasba led to recovery of various ivory products, including 10 finished sculptures, nine semi-finished ones, a packet of jewellery, a comb and two elephant tusks. While a pair of tusks can fetch around Rs 31 lakh in the illegal market, a sculpture can fetch crores.

During interrogation, the duo revealed that they used to procure elephant tusks from Kerala and store them in the house.

Sculptors and artisans from Kolkata and Baharampore worked in the house, transforming the tusks into works of art.

The finished products were sent to Siliguri from Kolkata and then onward to Nepal via road.

"It is difficult to ascertain the market price of the sculptures as they have very intricate designs. Moreover, some other chemicals and compounds have been mixed with ivory to give the products strength," said a DRI official.

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