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The mystery of the Ambani diamonds

Part I. Scene I

A charted flight from sultry Bombay lands in Bangalore carrying on board three important passengers -- Tina Munim Ambani, former actress and wife of industrialist Anil Ambani, her sister and the latter's husband. Their mission? Shopping, of course.

After all, Bangalore does have a lot to offer, especially to one who's not merely a connoisseur of great art and textiles, but also silks, sandalwood and jewellery.

Speaking of jewellery, Ambani is wearing an exquisite choker, replete with more than a hundred-odd diamonds, clasped rather elaborately with a humungous solitaire in the centre. Nothing unusual, married as she is into a family of fortune.

Touching down in Bangalore, Ambani visits her relatives, the Kharas, who stay in one of the city's posher residences, the Regency Lavelle Apartments. Raja Khara, his Italian wife, his two-year-old son and Khara's sister, who incidentally has married Ambani's nephew, are surprised and happy at the unexpected visit.

Ambani, her sister and Khara's sister shop till the afternoon while the sister's husband goes off to tackle urgent business elsewhere. They return to the Kharas' household and after a hot cuppa, Ambani decides to shower and freshen up before the return flight to Bombay the same evening. She repairs to the Kharas' bedroom, divests herself of the diamond necklace, slipping it inside the purse. The purse itself she tosses on the bed before heading for the bathroom.

Twenty minutes? Or was just 15? She emerges refreshed and reperfumed, and reaches for the necklace in the purse. Consternation and dismay flit across her face. It isn't there!

Part I. Scene 2 (an hour later)

A frantic Ambani alerts Mr and Mrs Khara, Khara's sister and her own dear sibling. There are no servants in the house to filch the thing. She turns the purse upside down and, finally, the famous lady actually descended to her knees to find the missing choker. She goes back and forth, trying to recollect details of the last few minutes before that fateful bath.

That necklace, Ambani informs the upset family, was expensive. A massive understatement: it is worth Rs 1.2 million, as she helpfully adds. And the matter is handed over to the police.

Part II. Scene II

The Cubbon Park Police register a case of missing jewellery filed by Ambani on the afternoon of May 25. The cops search the apartment thoroughly. Meanwhile, Ambani flies back to Bombay and so the police question the Kharas, looked suspiciously at the two-year-old child, and went off feeling hopeless. No clues. No suspects. Even if it isn't everyday that the Ambanis report robberies to them.

Scene 2

The inspector receives a call the next day from Raja Khara. Khara claims he saw a shining object wedged between two tables. The police get there pronto. And, yes, the shining thing is the lost choker. Another investigation is initiated while the priceless collar is handed over to the City Crime Branch, to finally rest with Director General of Police Syed Ulfath Hussain.

"I went to the Kharas' residence -- which is extremely posh; they have a rich lifestyle,'' says Hussain. The DCP says he learnt that Khara did not do any business himself and had failed in some small enterprises earlier. The police question whoever they and and leave. And since there only five people around, there isn't much questioning done that evening.

The police conjecture that it could be Ambani herself who misplaced the thing, or the child who must have seen the gleaming thing go into the bag and got after it. But facts not forthcoming, the cops don't hope to get to the bottom of it.

Part III. Scene 1 Two months later.

The DCP has the jewellery evaluated and discovers that it costs Rs 5 million, not Rs 1.2 million as claimed by Ambani.

Ambani claims back the thing, claiming, "It is a gift from my husband, which has sentimental value.'' She produces a few bills for the necklace, all made out in Anil Ambani's name.

Part III. Scene 2

The additional chief metropolitan magistrate rejects Ambani's petition in October, claiming the choker would be released only after a "no objection certificate from Mr Anil Ambani''.

According to the court, Ambani neither filed the petition nor authorised his wife to do so. Clearly, unlike his wife, he is most unsentimental. And so the choker and the chokee, so to say, are kept apart. And since the item is deemed non-perishable, it is kept in police custody till the crime branch completes the investigations. Over to DCP Hussain, as it were.

Part IV. Scene 1 Afternoon, at Infantry Road.

"What more can I investigate," laughs Hussain. "We had asked the court to return the jewel to Ms Munim as we do not have a safe place to keep such an expensive item of jewellery for an indefinite period but it still insists on us filing a report.

"What do I file? The ball is in the court's court.''

Part III. Scene 3

The suave and goodlooking Raja Khara opens the door of apartment 3A. Asked to shed some light on the matter, he rougishly says, "No comments, ma'am.'' The door shuts.

Ambani calls up Hussain, demanding that he stop speaking to the press, "It's all over the Bombay papers, please don't publicise the affair any more.''

Very good, but still what happened to the jewellery between the time she stepped into the bathroom and the time a policeman laid gloved hands on it? It would be interesting to know. And why isn't Ambani claiming back the choker or giving his wife an NOC to pick it up herself? And how long will the choker remain in police custody before, as some cynics imply, a replica replaces the original?

Epilogue

"Frankly,'' says Hussain, "the necklace was ugly. It looked like artificial jewellery to me. I guess only the real owner knows its true worth." This, notwithstanding what the official evaluation said.

"Besides this is such a minor case. There is so much crime, robbery and theft happening in Bangalore these days. Who has the time to 'further' investigate a lost-and-found piece of jewellery?''

The case rests.

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