Mamata government bids to take over Tagore Nobel theft probe

Kolkata, Aug 5 (IANS) The West Bengal government is approaching the central government seeking to take over the probe of theft of Rabindranath Tagore's Nobel Prize medallion, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Friday.

"If the state government is given the responsibility, we can endeavour to retrieve the medallion. That is why are approaching the centre," said Banerjee after holding an administrative meeting in Burdwan district.

Chief Secretary Basudeb Banerjee said the state government will be writing to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) which was entrusted with the probe.

"If CBI cannot, we can look for Tagore's Nobel," Mamata had said on Thursday during a visit to the Tagore founded Visva Bharati University at Santiniketan in Birbhum district.

The sensational theft of the medallion and 47 other memorabilia from Rabindra Bhawan at Santiniketan came to light on March 25, 2004.

The investigation was handed over to the CBI which after three years of fruitless probe, closed the case in August 2007, only to reopen it subsequently in September, 2008.

Failing to make much of a headway, the agency closed the case again in 2010.