MF Husain: Indian court orders seizure of ‘offensive’ painting

The art gallery said in a statement that it was “reviewing the situation” and “trying to follow developments”.

Maqbool Fida Husain is one of India’s greatest painters and has been called the “Picasso of India” but his artwork has often caused controversy in the country. His works sell for millions of dollars.

His career was marked by controversy when he was accused of vulgarity and condemned by hardline Hindus for painting a nude goddess.

In 2006, Husain publicly apologized for his painting, Mother India. It shows a naked woman kneeling on the ground making the shape of a map of India. He left the country the same year and lived in self-imposed exile in London until his death.

In 2008, the Supreme Court of India refused to launch criminal proceedings against Husain, In additionsays that his paintings are not obscene and nudity is common in Indian iconography and history.

The court then rejected an appeal against a high court ruling that quashed criminal proceedings against Husain in the cities of Bhopal, Indore, and Rajkot, condemning the rise of a “new puritanism” in India.

The court also rejected a summons for Husain, then in exile, to be summoned and asked to explain his paintings, which were accused of disturbing religious sentiments and disturbing national integrity.

“There are so many such subjects, photographs and publications. Are you going to make a case to all of them? What about temple structures? Husain’s work is art. If you don’t want to see it, don’t see it. There are many such art forms in temple structures,” he said. high court.

Many believe that there is a tide of illiberalism against artistic expression in India.

In October the Bombay High Court reprimanded the customs department, In addition to seize artworks by renowned artists FN Souza and Akbar Padamsee on the grounds that they are “obscene material.”

The court ruled that not every nude or sexually explicit painting qualifies as obscene and ordered the release of the seven confiscated artworks.

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