Nude Bharatmata under government scanner

Sudhi Ranjan Sen

Saturday, April 8, 2006 (New Delhi):

MF Hussain, one of India’s most celebrated yet controversial artists, may be in trouble once again.

But this time, he faces flak not from the Sangh Parivar but from the Central government over his nude depiction of Bharat Mata, a contemporary goddess.

He is also under fire for his two other paintings of Goddess Saraswati and Parvati.

Religious sentiments

NDTV has learnt that the union home ministry has asked the law ministry to examine whether the celebrated painter has committed a crime by hurting the sentiments of a religious group.

It will also be probed whether Hussain has violated the Flags and Emblems Act with his depiction of the tricolour.

The home ministry is also uneasy with Bharat Mata’s hand placed across her forehead in the painting. It believes that it is a depiction of divided Kashmir, which is contrary to India’s stand.

If the Law ministry decides that some provisions of the Indian Penal Code or the Flags and Emblems Act have been violated, the Home Ministry will have little option but to prosecute the country’s foremost artist.

In its wake, Hussain will be stripped of all his government honours, including the Padmashree award.

Looking for violations

Sources have told NDTV that the file was referred last week to the Law ministry, which believes the painting may not have directly violated the Flags and Emblems Act but could have violated the IPC.

While the artist may be the best person to answer the government’s doubts, he has not been approached yet.

But the issue is not merely a legal one but a political one as well. The UPA will have to explain how, as cultural cop, it has made common cause with the Sangh Parivar, which has consistently and violently protested against Hussain’s paintings.