I wrote my own obituary and believe in it, author Prumal Murugan tells Madras HC

CHENNAI: Embattled Tamil author Perumal Murugan told the Madras high court on Tuesday that he had written his own obituary and still believed in it.
“I published my own obituary in my Facebook account. Whether others believe in the death of Perumal Murugan as a writer or not, I believe in it. A writer cannot function under threat or fear," the author of the controversial novel “Mathorubagan” (One Part Woman) informed the court in an affidavit.
The affidavit was submitted before a bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice M M Sundresh hearing a batch of public interest litigations filed in the aftermath of the controversy relating to the novel.
The author said ever since the controversy broke, his family had been living in exile and that it was suffering unbearable mental tension and confusion. At a ‘peace meeting’ which was convened by Tiruchengode divisional revenue officer (DRO) R Suman, he was asked to give an unconditional apology.
Finding it futile to argue and explain his version, the author said he had told the DRO to write whatever she wanted and that he would affix his signature.
Function of a writer was to question social values and subject them to critical examination, Murugan said, adding that he did not know if he could continue to write with same understanding hereafter. "At the end of the introspection, it is concluded that I should cease to write," he said in the affidavit.
After going through the detailed account of the controversy and his own shocking decision not to write anymore, the judges said since the writer himself had come before the court, it did not intend to keep other PILs, including those filed by the People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), pending any longer.
Multifarious litigation will not serve any purpose, said Chief Justice Kaul, adding that the court would permit others to assist it in dealing with the issue.
The bench adjourned the matter to April 27 for further hearing.
It may be recalled that “Mathorubagan” kicked up a controversy in the author's home town of Tiruchengode in the Namakkal district in December 2014, as a portion of the novel dealt with a strange temple custom. Facing criticisms locally and being targeted by various fringe groups, he had to flee the town and remain underground. He later lodged a police complaint too.
Local police and revenue authorities then held a 'peace committee' meeting, where the author had to face representatives of protesters alone. At the end of the meeting, he gave an undertaking to delete the controversial portions from the book, withdraw unsold copies of the book from the market, not to write such objectionable stuff in future and offer unconditional apology.
After the meeting and the 'voluntary' undertaking, he announced in his Facebook account that writer Perumal Murugan was dead and that he would not write anything anymore. He would simply be a college lecturer henceforth.
This self-obituary created a storm in literary circles and support poured in for him from different quarters. The Progressive Writers Association and the PUCL filed PILs in the high court. The court, however, wanted to hear from the writer.