Despite HC relief, Husain not sure about return

Eminent painter M F Husain, at the centre of controversy over his nudist paintings, on Friday refused to say whether he would end his self-imposed exile after a relief from the Delhi High Court but voiced his apprehension over three more cases pending against him.

“Why should I be happy? I am worried about three more cases pending against me,” Husain, 92, who has been living in self-exile in Dubai, London and Qatar since 2006, said. He was reacting to the HC ruling that quashed criminal proceedings against him for allegedly hurting public sentiments through his “obscene” paintings. The renowned painter, who fled after his paintings of Bharat Mata as well as of Hindu Gods earned him the ire of right wing groups like Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal, said on phone from Qatar that he welcomed the HC’s decision but at the same time was apprehensive about the pending cases.

When asked if the court judgment was enough to persuade him to return back to India, Husain refused to comment. Seven cases were registered against Husain in the 1990s.

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The proceedings against the painter were quashed on Thursday in complaints filed in Panderpur (Maharashtra), Rajkot (Gujarat) and Indore and Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh) alleging that his paintings were obscene.

“A painter at 90 deserves to be in his home — painting his canvas,” the judge had said on Thursday quashing the proceedings in three cases against Husain.