Artist Durga Malathi’s Facebook posts and photographs of the paintings were received with criticism and verbal abuse. (File)
Durga Malathi, an artist, has filed a written police complaint alleging that her home was pelted with stones on Thursday night by unidentified persons. The stone pelting comes after her paintings, shared on Facebook, expressing her outrage over the gangrape and murder of an eight-year-old child in Kathua were criticised by many for its depiction of Hinduism and Hindu symbols. One of Malathi’s paintings depicted the male genitalia on a trident.
Malathi’s Facebook posts and photographs of the paintings were received with criticism and verbal abuse. She also claimed that she received death threats from many. She shared photographs of the shattered windshield of her vehicle. Earlier Friday, in a Facebook post, she wrote, “What wrong have I done? I painted pictures of the men who raped a small child. I had to undergo the ignominy of repeating several times through posts and Facebook live that the paintings were not against any religion. I am constantly having to remind myself that I live in a democratic country. If I don’t get justice, I will have to believe that democracy was a big lie.” The post was originally in Malayalam.
Malathi also said that abject silence from several quarters goes to prove that people somehow believe she deserved the criticism and abuse being showered on her.
An officer at the Pattambi police station confirmed that they received a written complaint from the artist regarding the stone-pelting incident. “Our officers have gone to her house to investigate the incident,” he said.