The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), an institution meant to be the custodian of India’s rich history, is embroiled in a significant crisis of credibility. This isn't just about a few misplaced artifacts or a delayed report, which would be common enough in any bureaucratic institution under the government of India; it's about the very integrity of archaeological practice and its susceptibility to political agendas.

The recent controversy surrounding archaeologist K Amarnath Ramakrishna and the Keeladi excavation in Tamil Nadu lays bare this deep-seated issue. The excavation at Keeladi, which began in 2014 under Mr Ramakrishna's leadership, was hailed as a monumental discovery. It unearthed a sophisticated, literate urban society which predated what we know of the Indus Valley Civilization, and provided crucial evidence to bridge the historical gap between the Iron Age and the Early Historic Period.

However, the project took a dramatic and questionable turn when Mr Ramakrishna was abruptly transferred to Assam in 2017. This transfer, as noted by scholars Swarati Sabhapandit and C P Rajendran, who have written about the controversy, was widely perceived as an attempt to undermine the findings. Some people were said to be unhappy that a site in South India had acquired a historicity and a level of civilizational antiquity hitherto understood to be the preserve of the North.

Worse, following Mr Ramakrishna’s transfer, the ASI controversially claimed there were no significant findings at the site and halted the third phase of excavation. This forced the Madras High Court to intervene, transferring the site to the Tamil Nadu State Department of Archaeology, which has since unearthed thousands more artifacts, further substantiating the importance of the site – and casting serious doubt on the professional integrity of those........

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