Muslin Paints (Gasp!)
Nude Hindu Deities
by Conrad Goeringer
October 31, 1996
In India, a group calling itself the People's Youth Forum has filed a petition with the government demanding that criminal charges be brought against an artist named Maqbool Fida Husain for obscenity, vulgarity and offending religious belief. Husain is a highly celebrated artist in that country, but the Forum objects to his paintings which depict Hindu female deities as nude and semi-nude women. This is the nation that produced erotic masterpieces like the Karma Sutra, is it not? And where ancient (and even more contemporary) temples are covered with colorful depictions of erotic ecstasy? What seems to worry the prim and proper folks at the Youth Forum, though, is that Husain is supposedly a Muslim. Guess that only Hindus can draw naked female Hindu deities, right?
The right-wing Hindu nationalist Janata Party (BJP) has jumped into the fray, joining the Forum and demanding that Husain be prosecuted. That may be difficult, though. At 81, Husain is going strong and is one of the nation's most celebrated artists. He began his career nearly half-a-century ago illustrating movie posters and billboards. Since then, he has won numerous artistic honors.
May 2, 1998
BOMBAY, India -- Twenty-six members of an extremist Hindu group have been arrested for ransacking the house of a Muslim artist because of a nude painting of a Hindu goddess.
Maqbool Fida Hussain, one of India's most famous painters, has been the target of several attacks, especially by the right-wing Bajrang Dal Party, which tries to impose its strict brand of Hindu culture at music concerts, art exhibits and cultural performances.
Several Bajrang Dal activists stormed Hussain's apartment in Bombay on Friday after a local newspaper reported that a 20-year-old painting of his, "Rescued Sita," was showing at an exhibit in another city.
They damaged lights, glass cases and tore up two unfinished oil paintings, police said. Hussain was not home at the time.
Bombay police arrested 26 people Friday on charges of trespassing. They face several months in prison if convicted.
The protesters said they objected to the nude depiction of Sita, a Hindu goddess.
Hussain has said he meant no disrespect to any religion and that ancient Hindu paintings and sculptures are filled with paintings of nude gods and goddess.
He dismissed the break-in, saying, "I don't want to read too much into the incident."
Recently, extremist groups supporting the Bajrang Dal stormed a gallery in New Delhi that exhibited "Rescued Sita."
Ten quacks held in
W. Godavari raids
from the Deccan Chronicle
November 15, 1999
Eluru: After the fake currency racket and the fake B Ed certificates racket, it is now the turn of the fake doctors to hog the limelight. As many as 10 quacks were arrested by the police on Thursday and Friday in West Godavari district.
Raids conducted in different parts of the district showed that persons who had not even passed 10th standard had set up a practice, and some of them were found to be doing quite well. A few of them have been in the “medical” profession for more than a decade.
Following a tip-off to Eluru range DIG P Chandrasekhar Reddy, a police party, led by Additional Superintendent of Police, Mahesh M Bhagawat, raided the Sri Sai Praja Vaidyasala and arrested one V K Choudhary and his wife Sumati Devi who masqueraded as medical practitioners.
Investigations revealed that the couple were claiming to hold MBBS and MD degrees which was not true. Suspecting more such cases, the police raided several places in the district. In Eluru town alone, three persons — M V Sivaramakrishna, P Sudarshan Babu and his wife Nagasulochana — were arrested for setting up practice without the required qualification.
Sivaramakrishna a native of Machilipatnam who had failed to clear the Intermediate examinations claimed that he was an MBBS. Sudarshan Babu, a native of Potunoor village under Dendulur mandal, claimed that he was a children’s specialist with an MBBS and DAMS, while his wife claimed to be a specialist in women’s problems; but none had cleared even the Intermediate examinations.
D Venkataratnam of Nallajarla, M Srinivasa Rao of Yadavole, S Muralikrishna, Parthasarathi, G Shanta Kumari, D Nagaraju of Nidadavole were arrested on Friday on the same charges.One Kartik Chandra Sarkar of Calcutta in Galayagudem village under Denduluru mandal was also arrested for claiming to be a sexologist.
This “doctor” was found to have not passed even SSC. Sarkar was said to be in the business for several years and had married a local girl just 13 days ago. Following the raids, three quacks in Eluru are said to have closed shop and fled.