In line with the RSS, the Shiv Sena has said that MF Husain, who is all set to adopt Qatar’s nationality, can return to India, provided he seeks an apology from the Hindus.
However, Hindu Janjagruti Samiti (HJS), which was apparently behind Husain’s decision to leave India in 2006, has demanded that he should be arrested and brought back to appear before the court in the cases filed against him.
In an editorial in Saamna on Tuesday, Sena chief Bal Thackeray said: “Husain, seek apology and return to your motherland, if you want.”
Thackeray asserted that the Sena never wanted Husain to leave India. “He is a great painter. The rich people all over the world buy his paintings for millions of dollars. But when he painted Hindu deities in the nude, there was an outburst of sentiments. Shiv Sainiks too stalled his exhibition in Delhi,” he said.
The editorial said that any artist who paints prophet Mohammad or Jesus in a negative manner is punished. Don’t the Hindus have a right to protest if someone hurts their sentiments? “Husain has hurt Hindu sentiments. It was possible for him to settle the matter by seeking an apology, but he did not do that. I may have sympathy for Husain, but insulting Hindu gods is not an indication of a good artist,” he said.
HJS spokesperson Ramesh Shinde said they will not accept any apology from Husain. “Apology will not serve any purpose. He has committed a crime and he has to be punished. The government should arrest him and bring him back to complete the court cases pending against him,” he said.
The Samiti launched a campaign against Husain since 1996, when his paintings of nude deities created a controversy.
Last week, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat said they would not oppose Husain’s return if he sought an apology.
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