India can import Rushdie’s Satanic Verses after ban order ‘untraceable’

A scholar brought nan lawsuit successful 2019 aft failing to find charismatic impervious of nan prohibition connected authorities websites.

A tribunal successful India has lifted a three-decade prohibition connected Salman Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses aft authorities were incapable to nutrient nan original bid prohibiting imports of nan arguable novel.

The Delhi High Court quashed nan 1988 import prohibition connected Tuesday successful a lawsuit brought 5 years agone by scholar Sandipan Khan, stating that India’s authorities had said nan notification banning nan arguable book was “untraceable”.

“We person nary different action isolated from to presume that nary specified notification exists,” nan tribunal said successful its order, which was reported connected Friday, pointing retired that moreover nan customs section charismatic who was said to person written it had “shown his helplessness successful producing a copy”.

Khan said he revenge his lawsuit aft being told astatine bookstores that nan caller could not beryllium sold successful aliases imported to successful India. When he searched, he could not find charismatic impervious of nan prohibition connected authorities websites.

The Satanic Verses, group successful London and ancient Mecca, Islam’s holiest site, was published successful September 1988 to captious acclaim.

But nan caller prompted world contention soon aft its publication, arsenic immoderate Muslims saw passages astir Prophet Muhammad arsenic blasphemous.

It triggered convulsive demonstrations and book burnings crossed nan Muslim world, including successful India, which has nan world’s third-largest Muslim population.

Months earlier his decease successful 1989, Iran’s first Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa, aliases belief edict, against Rushdie, and urged “Muslims of nan world quickly to execute nan writer and nan publishers of nan book”.

Iran’s 15 Khordad Foundation offered a multimillion-dollar reward for his murder.

The India-born British author, now 77 and a naturalised American citizen, went into hiding and has since go an outspoken defender of free speech. His book was banned successful 20 countries, including his birthplace.

Rushdie gradually emerged from his underground life successful 1991, but his Japanese translator was killed successful July that year.

His Italian translator was stabbed a fewer days later and a Norwegian patient changeable 2 years later.

In August 2022, Rushdie was stabbed connected stage during a speech successful New York, which near him unsighted successful 1 oculus and affected nan usage of 1 of his hands.

Then Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi banned nan import of nan book a period aft it was published successful 1988, hoping to triumph Muslim support earlier elections.

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Al Jazeera and news agencies