On Thursday the Delhi High Court lifted a 36-year-long import ban on Salman Rushdie’s 1988 novel. The novel, The Satanic Verses, which had sparked global controversy and was widely criticized as blasphemous. It had also been blocked from entering India. This was due to a government ban in 1988.
In a very significant decision on November 5, the Delhi High Court ended the import ban on Salman Rushdie’s novel, The Satanic Verses. The court in its hearing stated that the authorities could not provide the original notification document supporting this restriction.
What Did The High Court Say?
The high court noted that as the ban order from 1988 could not be found hence it must presume no ban order exists dismissing the case. The decision to lift the ban after 3 decades comes after a petition was filed in 2019 by a Delhi resident Sandipan Khan. Sandipan argued that he was unable to import The Satanic Verses due to the alleged 1988 notification issued by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC).
According to reports Khan had tried to buy the book in India but was told it couldn’t be sold or imported due to the ban. When he checked government websites and filed a Right to Information (RTI) request, he was unable to find any documentation confirming the restriction and the ban. This led him to file a Petition in the Delhi High Court
Meanwhile, during the court proceedings and hearing, the CBIC and other government departments admitted they could not find the 1988 notification that supposedly enforced the ban on Rushdie’s novel.
Amidst this the High Court bench, comprising Justice Rekha Palli and Justice Saurabh Banerjee, observed that, in the absence of this notification, they had no option but to presume that the notification did not exist. Consequently, the court chose not to evaluate the ban’s validity and dismissed the petition as “infructuous.”
Why was Rushdie’s novel ‘The Satanic Verses’ was banned in India?
The issue began in 1988 under the Rajiv Gandhi-led Congress government, following complaints from the Muslim community. The community claimed that the content in the novel was blasphemous and offensive towards Islam. Which led to prohibition of the novel’s import in 1988.
This decision was a measure to prevent potential law and order issues. Muslims in India and other countries strongly opposed the book’s release, resulting in widespread protests like burning the books, and even riots. The government’s move was defended years later by former Union Minister K. Natwar Singh, who claimed it was solely for the safety of the public.
The content of ‘The Satanic Verses’:
The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie is a magical realism novel that explores themes of religion, good ,evil, and the immigrant experience. The story follows two Indian Muslim men, Gibreel Farishta and Saladin, who meet on a flight from Bombay to London. The plane is hijacked by Sikh terrorists, and the terrorists accidentally detonate a bomb, destroying the aircraft.
The Indian-born British-American novelist Salman Rushdie’s Satanic Verses, though critically acclaimed, became infamous for its portrayal of Prophet Muhammad. Not just in India but it also sparked violent backlash globally. The novel was banned in many countries, including Iran.
Notably, in the year 1989, Iran’s then Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah issued a fatwa. Now if you’re wondering what is a Fatwa… well, A fatwa is a legal ruling or opinion on a point of Islamic law, issued by a qualified Islamic scholar, or mufti, in response to a question.
But this Fatwa called on the Muslims to assassinate Rushdie, the declaration lasted for over ten years and Rushdie was forced to go into hiding under police protection for over 9 years. Last year, the author was attacked while delivering a lecture in New York, leaving him blind in one eye.
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However, with the Delhi High Court’s recent ruling, the import restriction on The Satanic Verses has been lifted. The court order specifies that the petitioner, Khan, is now entitled to “take all actions in respect of the said book as available in law,” meaning he can legally pursue its importation.
Advocate Uddyam Mukherjee, representing Khan, stated that the court’s decision paves the way for the book’s availability in India, potentially allowing readers to access it for the first time in over three decades.
While on the other hand the Union government, represented by Senior Standing Counsel Anurag Ojha and other advocates, were unable to produce the notification, despite efforts by various departments.
Not just that the Ministry of Home Affairs also transferred responsibility to the Customs department, citing that the document had been lost over time. The purported author of the original notification also confirmed his inability to retrieve the document, effectively leaving the court without a basis to uphold the ban.
As the ban has been lifted the path now appears open for The Satanic Verses to enter the Indian market, potentially rekindling debates around its content and reception in the country.
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