Three days after a court in India ordered the seizure of two paintings by late artist MF Husain over a complaint that they were “offensive,” the gallery displaying them strongly opposed the “unfounded allegations” in a case that sets artistic freedom in the country against personal religious values.
The Delhi High Court on 20 January permitted police to seize the paintings after a lawyer named Amita Sachdeva complained the artworks – featuring Hindu deities Ganesha and Hanuman alongside nude female figures – “hurt religious sentiments”.
