It’s an indictment that came 73 years too late. Harivansh Rai Bachchan’s magnum opus Madhushala, which made him an overnight celebrity with its publication in 1935 has ruffled holy feathers here for “it’s potential for promoting moral depravity and licentiousness in society, particularly among youth”. On Friday evening, Shahar Qazi Lucknow, Maulana Mufti Abul Irfan Ahmad Jaimul Aleem Qadiri who is also the president of Idara-e-Sharia issued a fatwa against Madhushala.

The book he decreed, “was anti Islamic and also unfit to be taught at any academic institute”. And even as the edict by the veteran cleric, generally regarded as a liberal, has invoked a passionate debate among literary circles, not to mention a feeble protest from his younger colleagues like Maulana Khalid Rasheed Firangimahali, the mufti justifies his stance.Mufti Qadiri said that a Muslim organisation from Madhya Pradesh approached him on November 10 with a copy of Madhushala. “They had sought my opinion over the wisdom of prescribing as text book in schools and colleges a book that eulogised alcohol and drunkenness in society.

The decree, said mufti, was passed after going through the contents which “turned out to be extremly hurtful to the setiments of devout, though this kind of writing has its own set of admirers”. Bachchan sahab may have been a good shair but artistic license can be allowed upto permissible limit which he obviously crossed in his writings, the fatwa maintained.