By Parmanand Pandey
It is really shocking and unfortunate that MF Hussain, a famous painter has, with his own volition; decided to relinquish the Indian citizenship to become the citizen of Qatar, an Islamic country, where freedom of expression is as removed as the sky is from the earth. As a matter of fact, singing, dancing and painting is anti-Islamic and satanic because they supposedly cause deviation from worship. That is why, it is beyond anybody’s imagination that a person like MF Hussain, who claims to be the votary of freedom of expression would salivate for the citizenship of a tyrannical and intolerant country. This shows that his advocacy for freedom and speech and expression is not only phoney but a complete trash. He has proved to be a suspect by his conduct.
India, by all means; a country of liberal and tolerant society, has made him what he is. His works have been admired and eulogised not by Muslims but Hindu intellectuals, although his works are of very ordinary and average standards. There are hardly two opinions that most of the Hindu intellectuals have often gone overboard in praising the works of MF Hussain; not because they are good connoisseurs of art but because they suffer from acute inferiority syndrome. The purpose of this piece, however; is not to assess and evaluate the paintings of MF Husain but to nail his lies that he is a secular and strives for freedom. One question has always remained unanswered why does he relish in paining nude only Hindu Gods and Goddesses. Accepted, that imaging of Prophet Mohammed would be a blasphemy but why could he not paint others as he did in the case of Mrs. Indira Gandhi? And if his nude painting of Hindu deities are objected; then Mr. Hussain tries to adopt the specious logic of freedom of expression. Does it not show his mala fides and duplicity? He also cites that example of temples of mediaeval times, where there are plenty of exotic frescoes on the walls but he conveniently forgets that those carvings are not of deities.
Now when he has accepted the citizenship of an Islamic state, his intentions become abundantly clear that it is more to offend and hurt the religious feelings and sensibilities of Hindus than to espouse the cause of art and culture. There are some newspapers, intellectuals and politicians of India, who have become so blind with irrationality that they do not have any sense of shame left in them that they consider this act of MF Hussain as a shame for Indians. In fact, it is the other way round and should be a matter of shame for MF Hussain that he has decided to forego the citizenship of the country of his birth and which has given him so much including the prestigious membership of the Rajya Sabha but now he is unabashedly maligning the same motherland. He has, undoubtedly; let this country down. It is an affront to the civic society. If he had gone to settle in any democratic and civilised country, then it could have mitigated his misdemeanours and misconduct to some extent. But the drama and ruckus that he has created in preference to an Islamic country betrays his hatred and disliking for the culture and values of India. This is shameful indeed and he deserves to be squarely condemned, derided and deprecated in Gandhian way of non-violence. Those who support this reprehensible act of MF Hussain’s are no better than senseless and insane people.