Sotheby's denies allegations made by British journalist

Dr Usha Ramanruthan, the international auction house Sotheby's Bombay representative, says she will file a writ, both criminal and civil, against London-based art journalist Peter Watson for what she described as false insinuations and innuendoes against her and her employer.

Addressing a press conference in Bombay, she said the whole purpose of the recent media reports alleging foul play by Sotheby's was obviously with a view to sensationalise false information provided by disgruntled parties having a grievance against the auction house.

''The insinuations, the conjectures and the surmises made by Peter Watson in his interview are purely fictional and evidently intended to cast aspersions on myself, my personal integrity and professional career,'' she said.

The London-based journalist, in a book and a television report, alleged that Sotheby's experts frequently travelled to India in the guise of tourists or researchers and got involved in various shady deals with Indian art dealers and owners of art treasures.

Watson also interviewed Dr Ramanruthan and alleged that she was being used by Sotheby's as a channel for smuggling Indian antiques.

Armed with support from Sotheby's London office, she denied her alleged role in smuggling antiques and said ''I have no knowledge whatsoever, and cannot comment on Sotheby's activities prior to 1992 during which year I was employed by Sotheby's.''

In a telephonic interview from London, Sotheby's managing director George Bailey strongly refuted the allegations and said ''since January 1995, I know of no case where my staff has been involved in smuggling objects out of India.''

However, he acknowleged that there were people who clandestinely brought antiques and objects d'art from India and approached Sotheby's to strike a deal. ''We refuse to entertain them and in some cases even pass on such information to the Indian authorities'', he said.

Sotheby's directors held a special board meeting recently and decided to review its present practices to enforce a strict code of conduct.

The company will retain the services of independent law firms in the UK and USA and will focus in particular on international trade issues and auction room practices. Internal findings have made Sotheby's suspend two of its Milan-based employees recently.

UNI