BENGALURU: Four international sporting medals, including the gold medal won at the 1980 Moscow Olympics, were stolen from the residence of former Indian hockey captain and Olympian Maneyapanda Muthanna Somaya in Bengaluru, when burglars broke into his house in the early hours of October 28.
Somayya, 67, and his family had travelled to Kodagu on October 25 when the burglary took place at his residence in HAL 3rd Stage, New Thippasandra, within the jurisdiction of Indiranagar Police Station.
According to the police complaint, a neighbour noticed that the front door of the house was open at around 7.15 am on October 28 and alerted Somaya. CCTV footage from a neighbouring residence reportedly showed two unidentified persons breaking into the house at around 2.34 am. One of them was wearing a blue shirt and the other a red shirt.
Apart from the 1980 Moscow Olympics gold medal, the stolen medals included a silver medal from the 1982 Asian Games held in New Delhi, a bronze medal from the 1986 Asian Games in Seoul and another bronze medal from the 1982 Champions Trophy in Amsterdam.
The burglars also made away with gold jewellery, a gold coin, silver cups, six silver spoons, a silver vessel and Rs. 30,000 in cash. The total value of the stolen property has been estimated at Rs. 3.53 lakh.
Somaya has written to Karnataka Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar seeking his intervention to ensure a thorough and time-bound investigation and the recovery of the stolen medals and other valuables. He has emphasised that the Olympic gold medal is an irreplaceable symbol of years of dedication and sacrifice and holds immense significance for the nation and the history of Indian sport.
Indiranagar Police have registered a case under Sections 331(4) and 305 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Vikram Amathe, Deputy Commissioner of Police (East), informed that two special teams have been formed to identify the suspects and recover the stolen property.
Somaya represented India in three Olympic Games – Moscow (1980), Los Angeles (1984) and Seoul (1988). He captained the Indian hockey team at the 1988 Seoul Olympics and was conferred the Arjuna Award in 1985.
The 1980 Moscow Olympics gold remains India’s last Olympic gold medal in men’s hockey.
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