An unknown number of paintings from a Rs 200 crore collection featuring renowned artists like MF Husain and Jatin Das, have gone missing from the Air India headquarters in Mumbai.

The matter came to light after famous painter Jatin Das was contacted for a painting that he had made for Air India, for verification prior to sale. The Jatin Das creation, has been traced, a source said.

The discovery, a serious setback to the Narendra Modi administration's in-principle yes to disinvesting the carrier, was made after a government ministry began assessment work in view of the privatisation of Air India.

Air India faces a Rs 52,000 crore debt, and has assets valued at Rs 6,000 crore in addition to its fleet of airplanes worth Rs 20,000 crore.

When contacted by India Today, Air India CMD Ashwini Lohani said he didn't want to comment. The airline's management has ordered a probe, sources said.

A PUBLIC MUSEUM WAS IN THE WORKS

Top sources confirmed that in 2011, Air India CMD constituted a committee of curators and artists to catalogue paintings and artefacts in the carrier's collection. Cataloging work began in the same year.

The collection was stored in a hall in the Air India headquarters, and the idea was to open a public museum on the ground floor.

According to sources, the missing paintings are perhaps the tip of the iceberg, and the status of other Air India assets needs to be verified. The ongoing evaluation is expected to bring out shocking details of the paintings that are missing.

Air India officials however, refused to comment on the matter. "I will not like to comment on this right now," said CMD Ashwini Lohani.

Paintings by the biggest names of Indian art including Arpana Caur, Anjolie Ela Menon, B Prabha, KA Ara, MF Husain and V S Gaitonde were part of the collection.

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