TAXILA, June 8: The Department of Archaeology and Museums has initiated a probe into the removal and attempted theft of the head of a Buddha statue from the Julian monastery a few days ago, and the controversial exit of the accused from the site.

Sources in the archaeology department’s sub-regional office in Taxila told this reporter on Friday that Assistant Director (administration) Tahir Saeed had been appointed as the inquiry officer to probe the whole issue.

They said Mr Saeed visited the site and recorded the statements of all the concerned officials and witnesses, besides establishing the facts.

The inquiry officer also visited the stupa from where the accused removed the Buddha head, which was now in safe custody at the Taxila Museum.

Mr Saeed recorded the accounts of site attendants Ghulam Rasool and Wasif, site in charge Kamran, assistant curator Arshadullah, and curator Taxila Museum Amanullah.

It was also learnt that Federal Department of Archeology and Museums Director-General Dr Fazal Dad Kakar, on getting the information about the matter, also visited the site, inspected the affected stupa and examined the removed head.

Sources told this reporter that some political as well as bureaucratic figures were also mounting pressure on the high-ups of the archeology department and the Ministry of Culture to save the real culprits and to make the lower-ranking staff scapegoats to hush up the issue.

It may be mentioned here that on Tuesday six members of an international gang of antiquities smugglers posing as tourists came at the Julian monastery and stupa — commonly known as ancient Taxila Buddhist university — located about 10km north of the Taxila Museum.

One of them removed the stucco head of a statue of sitting Buddha using a sharp-edged object and tried to fled from the scene. The accused were later allegedly set free by some senior officials due to unknown reasons.

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