NEW DELHI: Expressing solidarity with painter M. F. Husain, a group of artists on Wednesday demanded that the Centre make its stand clear on the issue of the Hardwar court passing an order to attach the properties of the painter.

Addressing a press conference here, artist Ram Rahman said, "We want Members of Parliament and the Union Government to make their stand clear on the issue. Also, the Bharatiya Janata Party MPs who have been associated with culture and films, such as Hema Malini, Dharmendra, Shatrughan Sinha and Vinod Khanna, should come out very clear on the issue. Do they think that Husain is a criminal? Should he be arrested and his works destroyed?"

"Political patronage"

Mr. Rahman said those who were protesting against Mr. Husain enjoyed the patronage of political parties and were doing so at the behest of politicians.

"These people have enough to do with political parties, and Mr. L.K. Advani should make his stand clear on this hugely important issue. Mr. Advani was the one to bring up the issue in Parliament."

Terming the court order an "attempt to stifle voice," painter Krishen Khanna wanted to know about the freedom of speech.

"There is an attempt to encourage an atmosphere through legal and illegal means to curb the freedom of expression. Mr. Husain is being targeted because he is a successful Muslim."

Reacting to media reports that the Union Home Ministry had issued an advisory to the Delhi and Mumbai police stating that certain paintings of Mr. Husain could provoke communal disharmony, the artists demanded immediate withdrawal of any such advisory, if issued.

In a letter to Home Minister Shivraj Patil, they demanded that organisations and individuals who issued threats against Mr. Husain be punished.

They said the threats had been publicly issued with offers of monetary rewards, but the State and Central governments had done practically nothing to punish those people.

"M. F. Husain's work is a celebration of the multi-cultural and multi-religious life of post-Independent India. There has never been any obscenity, malice or slur against any community in Husain's works," said Mr. Khanna.

Also present at the press conference were art critic Geeta Kapur, poet Ashok Vajpeyi, filmmaker Syed Mirza and theatre personality M.K. Raina.

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