Two chairs associated with Chandigarh’s architectural heritage have been listed for auction in Luxembourg, prompting an appeal for Indian authorities to intervene and seek their return, according to Punjab E News.
The report identifies the pieces as teakwood chairs designed by architect Pierre Jeanneret and believed to date from around 1955. Lux-Auction has listed the pair as Lot No. 88, with an estimated price of €8,000 to €10,000.
According to the report’s account of the auction catalogue, the chairs were previously used in administrative buildings in Chandigarh before entering a private collection in 2007. That account does not itself establish the circumstances in which ownership changed.
Ajay Pal Jagga, identified as a member of the UT Administrator’s Advisory Council, has asked the Punjab government to take up the matter. In a representation to chief minister Bhagwant Mann and senior officials in India’s external affairs and culture ministries, he sought an FIR, a police investigation and diplomatic efforts to recover the furniture.
Jagga also drew attention to the Punjabi marking “ਕਿ: ਭ: 6” painted on the chairs. He suggested that it could indicate a connection to Kisan Bhawan in Chandigarh, although the report says their origin and ownership history require official verification.
The immediate issue is therefore both the proposed sale and the unresolved provenance of the pieces. The report describes a request for intervention; it does not establish that authorities have halted the auction or confirmed a claim to ownership.
