14 years after death, Husain remains on saffron radar

Over 25 rare M F Husain paintings will be auctioned on June 12, sparking protests from right-wing groups citing past controversies and hurt sentiments.

MUMBAI: More than two dozen rare paintings by M F Husain will go under the hammer on June 12, evoking a sense of déjà vu. The Indian modernist has, over the years, drawn the attention of saffron outfits, not so much for his artistic genius but his bold and controversial depiction of Indian gods and goddesses and, on one occasion, Bharat Mata (Mother India). It is this sense of outrage accompanied by protest that has returned 14 years after the artist’s passing.

Mumbai, India. June 04, 2025: Twenty-five rare paintings by the late Indian modernist painter M.F. Husain are displayed at the Pundole Gallery in Hamilton House, South Mumbai.Mumbai, India. June 04, 2025. (Photo by Raju Shinde/HT Photo) (Hindustan Times)

The 25 Husains to be auctioned on June 12 have been caught in legal crosshairs. These paintings were secured by the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED) as part of a case involving an unpaid loan of ₹236 crore by industrialist Guru Swarup Srivastava’s Swarup Group of Industries.

The artworks are part of Husain’s ‘Our Planet Called Earth’ series and titled under the auction theme ‘MF Husain: An Artist’s Vision of the XX Century’. The price they fetch at the auction, at the Pundole Art Gallery, will contribute to the recovery of the loan default.

Srivastava in 2004 had commissioned Husain to paint 100 works, for ₹1 crore each. The artist, aged 90 then, completed 25 paintings in the series. In 2006, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) initiated a probe into the Swarup Group for alleged misappropriation of ₹150 crore from a ₹236-crore loan from NAFED. In 2008, a tribunal permitted NAFED to secure assets of ₹100 crore, including the Husain paintings. The artworks have been locked up in a bank vault since.

Now, the Hindu Janajagruti Samiti, which has raised its voice against Husain’s work before, has called for a ban on the June 12 auction. Claiming that Husain has hurt Hindu and national sentiments, the outfit has warned of “strong public protest” if the auction goes through.

A delegation of the samiti has submitted a memorandum to the office of the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Mumbai Police Commissioner and the District Collector, demanding a ban on the auction.

The samiti and other right-wing outfits were particularly enraged and called for Husain’s arrest several years ago, when he exhibited a painting titled ‘Bharat Mata’. The artwork depicted the map of India as an unclothed female figure that bore the names of Indian cities on her body.

Saffron outfits and activists vandalised Husain’s shows in several India cities, and the artist eventually apologised for hurting people’s sentiments, although he claimed the name ‘Bharat Mata’ had not been assigned to the painting by him.

Nevertheless, a legal battle ensued and, in September 2008, the Supreme Court dismissed a petition against Husain, stating the painting was a ‘work of art’. But repeated conflicts with saffron outfits and hundreds of complaints filed against him forced Husain to leave India in 2005. He died in London in 2011.

“He deliberately painted vulgar and obscene images of goddesses Saraswati, Parvati, Ganga and Yamuna, thereby gravely hurting the sentiments of millions of Hindus in the world. Over 1,250 police complaints were filed across India against these offensive depictions… Holding an auction of Husain’s paintings is like indirectly supporting his previous anti-national and anti-social acts. Glorifying such individuals under the guise of “artistic freedom” is unacceptable,” said the letter submitted by the samiti.

Sunil Ghanwat, state coordinator of the Hindu Janajaruti Samiti, said, “Legal action should be taken against individuals, organisations or galleries involved in displaying or selling such works. The dissemination of artwork that insults national or religious sentiments must be prohibited. Additionally, the insulting painting of Bharat Mata should be officially declared as anti-national and destroyed.”

Asked if they had information that some of those controversial paintings were to be auctioned, Ghanwat said they were not protesting any paintings in particular; they were opposing the artist Husain.

Dadiba Pundole from Pundole Art Gallery said, “The court has ordered us to conduct the auction of Husain’s paintings. It will be conducted as per schedule. If anyone has any objections, they are free to go to court.”