Husain's grandson-in-law Jatin Suri, who was present at the ceremony, said the event was organised by Keith Vaz, the 53-year-old Labour MP. Vaz is Britain's longest-serving parliamentarian of Indian origin.

"It was a select gathering of more than a 100 prominent Indians," Suri said from Dubai on his return from London. The award consisted of a glittering shield bearing the citation. Husain gave a print of one of his paintings to Bercow.

Husain has been shuttling between London and Dubai since February 2007, after he was forced out of India by a slew of criminal cases against him. Yet, he continues to be one of India's two topgrossing artists.

One of his untitled canvases dating back to 1955 got more than $1 million (approximately Rs 4.8 crore) at the Sotheby's auction in New York on March 24--the same evening when he received the award from Bercow.

Reacting to the award, artist-activist Ram Rahman of SAHMAT--the organisation at the forefront of the campaign for justice for Husain--said it only showed what India had done to its bestknown artist. "It is good Husain saab continues to be feted by people the world over. But it is sad to see that in his own country, he suffers chastisement," he said.

On behalf of SAHMAT, Rahman said, about 200 eminent individuals across the country had written to the then president, APJ Abdul Kalam, requesting him to award the Bharat Ratna to Husain. "But we didn't even receive an acknowledgement." Rahman also recalled how the Kerala government revoked its decision to bestow the Raja Ravi Varma award upon Husain in 2007, after objections were raised against it.

The lifetime achievement award should set at rest Rahman's fears.