In what is being termed as the loss of Bhopal's pride, the erstwhile rulers of Bhopal's jewel-studded throne, which used to boast of numerous diamonds and gold jewels, has gone missing from Sadar Manzil. The pride of the then Nawabi Court, the throne was unexplainably kept in the basement of Sadar Manzil, which was also the Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC) headquarters till recently. The BMC's treasury department was given the responsibility of protecting the throne. It is believed that the jewels had been locked in the treasury department's basement for over 65 years since independence.
Though the items are still listed in the BMC records, the officials of the BMC are clueless about the jewel-studded throne. No one seems to have seen them post independence.This shocking fact came to light on Thursday after the BMC started clearing out all its belongings, while moving out of Sadar Manzil building after its headquarters were shifted to ISBT premises.
The BMC officials could find only around 10 brass finials, which were affixed in the upper part of the Sadar Manzil and the throne and its jewels was missing. According to the sources, an employee of the treasury department of the BMC has informed the corporation about the missing state of the precious items of Nawabi era from the basement through a note sheet. The shocking news has taken everybody by surprise and the senior officials have swung into action to find the whereabouts of the throne and its jewels.
BMC in-charge commissioner Chandramauli Shukla also went to treasury on Thursday with civil engineer AK Nanda, tehsildar, finance officer and PRO official and took out all the goods from the basement. Apart from the 10 finials, a silver necklace and few aluminum glasses have been extracted out of the treasury and safely kept in the bank. The BMC officials are now tight-lipped over the whole issue.